Broken Tool
by Sakushiro
Summary: At the age of 10, Naruto is an honary ANBU member, and soon to be Fifth Hokage, but when his last mission goes wrong, he quits the life of a shinobi. When Konoha is on the edge of destruction, will he rise up once more? Or will he watch as Konoha falls?
1. The Prologue

Broken Tool

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Prologue

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The door opened silently.

"You wanted something Hokage-sama?"

The Third looked up from his paperwork momentarily and a smile played on his lips. In front of him stood one of his most prized shinobi (an Anbu member to be exact), the youngest Anbu member since Itachi, the prodigy himself.

"Sit down, no need for formalities…"

He remembered with a pang of remorse when the boy had called him old man, those days were far too long ago now, the chubby cheeks had become harsher, more refined whilst the brow had become stony and unyielding. The boy could hardly be called a machine, nor could he be called a child. Laying his pen to the desk, he was silently thankful for the interruption from paperwork - it would be the _death_ of him someday, there always seemed to be a pile or three on his desk nowadays. Sarutobi leant back in his chair and turned his gaze back to the porcelain mask of the Anbu sat in the chair opposite him.

"Take the mask off, you're not on duty."

There was a brief flicker of all-too-human hesitation, before the porcelain mask was removed and laid down carefully on the desk, a sound barely made. Calm, blue eyes stared calculatingly back at him, blonde sun kissed hair framing his face, once upon a time the boy would have grinning and fidgeting; declaring his dream to be the best ninja ever…no longer. The boy sat quietly, like a man three or four times his age. This wasn't to say that this boy was unsocial and cold hearted, he was just professional. Sarutobi had seen him smile.

"_Look at you…So young and yet already one the most powerful shinobi in fire country." _he thought to himself, torn between regret and pride as he thumbed an edge of paperwork.

"Naruto. You are only ten years old and are already at a point in power that is considered Kage level."

This was acknowledged with a small smile, if anyone else had been in the room, they would have thought that the teenager didn't care, but Hiruzen Sarutobi saw that tell-tale flash of childish abandon behind the cool blue eyes. It had taken the council some time to realize how powerful the 'demon' had become; there had been several moment where the old man had thought they were going to execute Naruto on the spot, that he was too dangerous too live. It had only been after Naruto had saved Homura and Koharu from an assassination attempt did they see how much Naruto could help their village, that it would be a mistake to dispose of such a valuable commodity.

"Time and again you have proven yourself, and I have seen with my own eyes that you are a natural leader…"

He had been taught by the best too, himself and Jiraiya, when his perverted student had managed to tear himself away from his 'research' but he had always wished that Tsunade would be able to teach him too. It was highly doubtful she would ever return, not after what happened to Nawaki and Dan, he wouldn't be surprised if she never thought about returning to Konoha again.

"…The council has decided that you would be the best candidate for the place of the Fifth Hokage."

The boy simply nodded, although Sarutobi noticed the air of desperation that seemed to cloud over his face. He _had_ wanted more of reaction, a smile, a punch to the air…even dancing on the table might have been accepted… A memory stirred from a time before Naruto was born, when he had told Minato about his candidacy for the place of Fourth Hokage…The Third shuddered; he never wanted that to happen

…Ever…again.

It had been mentally scarring.

"However…" Continued the Third, coming back to his senses "That promotion is hardly immediate, there is important training to be done before then. There is one more mission to complete before your... _apprenticeship_ of sorts can be made official. There's an entourage of shinobi traveling from Hidden Grass to Hidden Waterfall, our spy in Grass thinks that they may be plotting to kill the Daimyo of Fire."

"Any particular reason?" Naruto asked, leaning back in his chair and staring at the ceiling before remarking coolly "It's not every day you plan to kill the Daimyo."

"At this particular moment we're not sure… but they are suspected to be from Iwagakure."

"I see." The blond murmured, glancing down at the floor before asking. "How many?"

"30? Possibly more…"

The Third took out a small stack of papers "This is the intelligence report our spy sent back, it has rough details of almost everyone in the entourage" Naruto took the small stack from the Hokages' grip, flicking through the papers absent-mindedly, before standing.

"Is that everything Hokage-sama?"

"For this mission you will be traveling with Kakashi and his squad."

The third watched as Naruto's face light up, he and Kakashi had always gotten along, since the day they had met.

"I thought Kakashi-senpai was a sensei now?"

"_Hmm...So he still calls him senpai... how amusing…"_ Kakashi had been the one that taught Naruto the ropes of Anbu, and the boy still hadn't forgotten.

"He's on leave for the moment…" Sarutobi sighed wearily, glancing in distaste at a particular mission report - C-Rank and still a fail; Kakashi's team were close to being disbanded "his team just came back from a rough mission."

Naruto shrugged nonchalantly "All of them are tough." Then the boy picked up his mask.

And he was gone.

Three masked figures were stood in the shadows of the giant gates of Konoha. Code name Kitsune leant against the wall, checking through the mission's provisions for the upcoming journey. The second was obviously a woman. Her light blonde hair swept up out of the way behind her head, loose strands a more common occurrence that she had hoped. Code name Tora. The third was by far the tallest, with dark black hair that shone blue in the moonlight and framed the Anbu mask. He sstood perfectly still. Code name Yama.

Kitsune was tapping his foot agitatedly.

"He'll be here soon Kitsune-sama" she began, more than a hint of playful sarcasm in her lilting, silky voice.

"Please, don't call me that Tora-chan."

Tora smiled underneath her tiger mask, she consider Naruto to be like the little brother she never had after she had lost her friend Denu in an incident with a missing nin on a mission they had taken together. Her team knew that she still blamed herself for his death, it was just in her nature, no matter what ranks he had attained.

Yama still didn't move, but Kitsune didn't really care, Yama was usually the silent type, not going out of his way to make conversation. Tora cared, and jabbed him in the ribs.

"Come on Yama-kun, lighten up will ya?" she teased, ruffling his hair with a gloved hand as Yama flinched. Before the man had a chance to reach boiling point, a brief rush of air signalled the entrance of a fourth masked figure into the group.

"Yo…" a gloved hand was raised in a sluggish greeting.

"You're late!" Tora yelled, ready to pounce on the last member of the squad in her fury, but held back by the stoic Yama, his hair still ruffled and drooping over the porcelain horns of his mask.

"Well, you see there was the little old woman and…" The fourth member started, rubbing his silver haired head with one of his hands. The fist that swung by his face narrowly missed, although his hair swayed slightly in the breeze as it sailed past. Tora's grin couldn't be seen, but it was painfully obvious when she sang out.

"Don't lie Inu-chan, don't you know what they do to bad dogs?".

Kitsune raised a slim eyebrow as he sensed a familiar chakra signal making its way towards the gate. The Hokage was really making a personal visit? The man was still wearing the robes of office, but kept to the shadow of the alleyway, it was hardly the place for the Hokage to be seen so late at night.

"I wouldn't have expected you to come see us off on such a mission." Naruto remarked, standing at attention.

"Well it is your last mission as Anbu Black Ops…I should at least wave you off."

Naruto couldn't help but wince at those words... his last mission? Would that really just be it? His dreams ruined for the sake of protecting the Hidden Village...? After a rush of air, only the Hokage was left, but the feeling of uneasiness still stayed. Nothing would go wrong… this was Konoha's _Piercing Wind_ he was thinking about here, the most accomplished Anbu Konoha had ever seen. The cool dawn finally arrived and the squad stopped for a moment, perched high above the floor on ancient branches, the permeating smell of rotting undergrowth strong in their nostrils. Kitsune had gone ahead to scout the surrounding area.

"Are we there _yet_?" Tora whined, looping lazily around a branch in her insatiable boredom.

"No." Yama all but growled, having been asked that question every ten minutes for the past two hours. Tora swung round, landing nimbly on her feet next to the annoyed man, who was seconds away from throttling her.

"It's still a day away." Inu pointed out, relaxing against the worn tree trunk, seemingly asleep, but still keeping an eye out for Kitsune.

"_Lies_." Tora spat, although her tone was kept childish rather than acidic, nudging Yama playfully before lating out on a branch in the sun. Yama shook his head. Anbu were supposed to be the elite of their village. Then why was almost everyone insane? There was no warning for the hand that suddenly found its way to his shoulder and he started forward, barely avoiding a fall from the branch on which he was perched. Kitsune stood, mask peeled back from his face in an expression of bemused confusion, resting casually as if he had been sat there the whole time. The team knew each other personally, the masks were simply for the enemy now. Kitsune liked to think it was better this way.

"Anything?" Inu asked, beginning to stand, although he already knew the answer if Naruto had removed his mask, but the blond still shook his head.

"There was nothing I could find." Kitsune shrugged, rolling an shoulder as it were stiff before allowing his arms to drop to his sides. "There aren't any patrols and they haven't set any traps."

"So they haven't even noticed we're here yet." Yama chuckled quietly "That gives us the advantage."

"Indeed, that it does... Everybody ready to go?" Kitsune asked, checking their surroundings one last time before replacing the mask.

"We just need to get in and out as quickly as possible." Inu instructed his squad with a grave tone "We want no survivors who could possibly continue in their attempts to kill or overthrow the Daimyo of Fire country. We want no trace that it was Konoha either. Tora, it's your job to clean up the crime scene and plant the evidence."

There was a tense silence that even kunai couldn't cut.

"So we go all out?" Tora whispered seriously, her voice laced with regret. Inu nodded.

"The mission details say we spare nobody."

Kitsune stared at the floor.

Konoha had received word of mission success a couple of days ago, the Hokage, Homura and Koharu were gathered in the main office, waiting for the returning shinobi. It was dark, although the Hokage had lit a candle and placed it upon the table, the still flame catching everyone's attention. The flame flickered once then went out and they started back as they were plunged into near darkness. A figure stood between them all, the moonlight glistening against the blood and the stench of decay strong in their nostrils. The Anbu mask was stained burgundy, the dried flakes peeling away to reveal bone white. The Hogake knew something was wrong just by the way Naruto was stood. Where was there rest of the team? Had the mission really been a success?

"Is everything al-" The Hokage started, concerned by the blonds' behaviour. Sarutobi only just managed to catch the mask before it cracked against his temple, the remnants of rust blood staining the edges of his ceremonial robes and palms. Naruto's eyes blazed wildly and his hair stood on end like he'd been struck by lightning. The boy's shoulders shuddered with barely contained rage... the room suddenly seemed too heavy to breath.

"I quit" Naruto growled, ruby red flecks dotting his eyes momentarily before he continued between gritted teeth."I can't take the role of Hokage."

Then the boy was gone, leaving nothing but the tang of rotting flesh, blood stains on the floorboards and the chipped Anbu mask in the hands of Sarutobi.

"He walked away...from..." muttered the Hokage, barely managing to hold himself in check. The old man sat still for a long moment, his thumb rubbing the roughed edges of the mask before his head dropped to his chest. He suddenly felt very old, and very afraid. It took less than five minutes for the remaining team members to arrive at the office.

"What happened Kakashi? I heard the mission was a success!" Sarutobi growled, his clawed hands still clutching at the mask as if somehow it would erase the past events.

"It was Hokage-sama, but…something happened…" The man began, clearly as perturbed as his leader "There was a confrontation, we're not sure on the details..."

Tora spoke. "He wouldn't tell us anything! He didn't even speak to us the whole way back!"

Sarutobi mentally cursed, how did nobody know what was wrong? They saw the boy almost daily!

"Did he say something to you Hokage-sama? Anything?" Yama asked, also removing his mask. Hiruzen sighed wearily, allowing himself to feel human for a moment as he held his weary head in weathered hands.

"Unless I didn't hear him correctly, he just resigned from being a shinobi"

Tora gasped, her deep brown eyes widening in surprise and fear. "No! Permission to leave Hokage-sama!"

"Granted" She left in a burst of speed with Yama soon after her, without even bothering to ask the Hokage for permission to leave. Kakashi stood still, watching them run off and disappear around a corner. With his mask resting on the side of his head he stared forlornly at the Hokage monument.

"_I'm sorry Minato- sensei, I couldn't even keep that promise for you."_

It was then that Sarutobi Hiruzen decided to leave for the night, for it would be a long day and Hokages were not supposed to be human.

* * *

Edited 03/03/13


	2. The Beginning

2 years later

He sat upright, sweat drenching his entire body and running in rivulets between his shoulder blades. His breathing was erratic and irrational, it was an ephemeral nightmare of the past and could no longer hurt him, but he allowed himself the selfish pleasure of being afraid. It was only then he realized how cold it was in his room, that he could see his misty breath in the air for a few seconds before it disappeared. The sweat on his skin began to prickle and he shivered. Outside it was still dark, the moonlight cast an eerie light on the building outside his murky bedroom window. Everything so still and quiet, not a sound was heard except his fitfully beating heart. He breathed in and out slowly, and rubbed his eyes, it was too late to go back to sleep now, he was wide awake.

Naruto sighed and slipped out of his warm bed.

He hissed as his feet came into contact with the cold wooden floor, lifting his feet as though the temperature hurt as he ran across his room to the cupboard where he kept his clothes. The stairs creaked as he made his way down to the ground floor; one of the floorboards was broken, and he had never got around to fixing it. It wasn't like he didn't have the time; he just never had the incentive to fix the broken board. In fact most of his house was in a similar state, the only door that still worked creaked ominously whenever he used it and the kitchen sink never seemed to drain, he was pretty sure there was a window pane in one of the abandoned rooms upstairs that had been smashed in a Genin training exercise but his house was avoided like a plague by the academy children. He hoped the stories about his dilapidated buildings were suitably scary to keep even the Chunin out of the way. …

The kitchen was a messy as ever, and a lonely cupboard door hung from rusted hinges - He'd fix it later. Empty instant ramen cups covered most of the counters, dirty cups and dishes littered the sink and the kitchen cupboards were open, revealing the little food that was left…mostly instant. Cleaning was another thing he could never get around to do. Naruto selected out one of the few instant ramen cups in the cupboard nearest to him, filled it with boiling water and set it on the side, waiting until the piping hot water had cooked the ramen all the way through. He washed one of the forks, as the cutlery drawer was empty with its contents spread across various rooms in the house.

Three minutes passed.

The fork was inserted into the boiling ramen, and the 12 year old sat down in the only free space there was in the kitchen and living area, an old brown armchair. It was the only thing he bothered to keep clean anymore. Next to it stood a bookcase, but unlike most 12 year olds bookcases, there were only two or three brightly coloured spines, the rest being dull, unimaginative colours, like grey or black. Those three books were the only colour in the drab room. He nestled back into the armchair, tucking his feet under him with the ramen resting precariously on one of the arms, as he reached for a dark green book. The book was the colour of dying grass, the covers stained with patches of dark brown, the gold lettering too faded for most to make out.

The Legend of the Gutsy Ninja.

Naruto traced the edge of the book, before turning to where his bookmark laid inside the books musty pages.

"_Why don't you just give up?" Shouted the furious enemy ninja "I'm tired of playing hide and seek!"_

_I was tired now, this game of cat and mouse had gone on too long, and my chakra was running dangerously low, I opened my hand and looked down at my last two smoke bombs._

_I closed my eyes and thought of home, my helpless comrades and countrymen, praying that my hopeless plan would work._

_Throwing the bombs, I disappeared from the enemy line of sight._

Naruto ate a few mouthfuls of ramen before turning back to his book.

_But I was too tired, before I managed to even land a hit, the enemy had a kunai aimed at my head and forced me to my knees._

"_Give up, there's no use, you have lost." he spat, sneering down at me._

_But I would not give up without a last fight… that was my ninja way._

"_Can I just say one last thing…?" I tried to get back to my feet, and stare at my opponent in the eyes, but the enemy wanted to hear nothing more from me._

"_I don't want to hear it!" He yelled, slamming me up against the tree "Just give up and die!"_

_The body, the clone, pinned against the tree disappeared in a puff of smoke. I stood behind him now, with a kunai against his neck._

"_Trying to make me give up…"_

_Rage built inside me, I would never give up!_

A few more mouthfuls of instant ramen disappeared from the cup.

"_Kage bunshin?" the enemy whispered, suddenly realizing he had been tricked._

_I knocked him to the ground with the flat of my hand._

"_E-even if you kill me, another will take my place! They will attack the village!"_

_He laughed, looking up at me evilly."There will be no peace…as long as we live in this accursed world of ninjas!"_

_This was something that my mind had turned to recently, the pain and suffering that we brought upon the innocent world…_

"_I will break the curse then." I told him "If there's such thing as peace I will find it! I will not give up!"_

_The smug look on his face was replaced by confusion._

_"W-who are you?" he asked_

_A leaf fell from the overhanging trees._

"_My name is…"_

He set the book back down on the shelf and stacked the empty ramen cup next to it.

It brought back bad memories, too many parallels that made his head spin. Jiraiya loved that book, as did his father so it seemed by the note Jiraiya had pencilled in the first few pages of the novel. Naruto... had never loved the book, it seemed hollow - propaganda more than anything. 'Fight for your village. Die for your village.' that was all it really wanted to say in the end, there was nothing truly admirable about that. He was interrupted from his thoughts by the sunlight that had begun to filter through the small window to his right, letting him know that dawn was approaching, and that the shop that he worked in needed opening before the sun got too high. He did not own the shop. It was Jiraiya's. It wasn't the ideal place to old to work, but he had no parents to pay for the things that he needed and he refused to accept anything from the Sandaime. He worked at a bookstore, where he sold the newest Icha Icha books.

Kakashi was a frequent customer, since he insisted on taking the brightly bound book everywhere, and they weren't exactly jutsu proof _yet_. The amount of times the silver haired Jounin had come in with a soggy stodge of paper after a suiton justu that came a _bit _too close, or a piece of charred paper when he _forgot _to avoid a katon jutsu were beyond human comprehension. Of course there were other customers that came, both men and women, but he remembered no faces.

There was a small section near the back of the store that sold the Legend of the Gutsy Ninja and its much unknown sequel… but very few even bothered to look, but if they had, they would have seen a well polished shelf and almost lovingly arranged stacks of books. But no-one cared about those books; Icha Icha was what came first.

Naruto walked through his front door, quickly locking it before walking down the dim street towards the bookshop. The street was almost silent and he could only see one window lit up, the shadows of human life stirring behind closed shutters. The street lamps were beginning to dim and die, and the sky to the east was turning a lighter purple, sunrise was only an hour or so away now. People would begin to appear on the streets, and by then he wanted to be hidden in the shop which few people visited. The rusted, brown key entered the ancient lock and there was an audible thunk as the mechanism opened and the dark brown door swung inwards, jingling a little bell hung over the doorway. He closed the door and woodenly changed the small hanging sign from 'Closed' to 'Open', and sat back in his chair waiting for the customers to arrive.

Naruto watched the young Academy students running down the street and smiled a little. He himself had never been to the Academy…or any kind of place that had involved children his own age; he had never spent time growing up like these children would. His training had been intense from the day he had begun. He had been ruthlessly pushed to be better than anyone else, perform things that people twice his age would be hard-pressed to follow. It had been living hell, constant sessions of healing to repair worn, malformed bones - their childish structure unable to cope under the strain of constant use, to repair torn muscles and chakra pathways.

It was enough to wish that you'd never been born.

The bell rang.

"Good morning Sir," Naruto nodded from his seat behind the panelled counter, idly flicking through a book on the history of Konoha (a book he knew off by heart but there were some sections he'd never get tired of). "What can I help you with this morning?"

The boy's tone was abrupt, almost enough to be considered impolite, but his words were polite enough and it was rare that his sharp nature would turn away customers (plus the true Icha Icha fans knew that this shop was the one that mysteriously seemed to have the signed copies). The customer didn't seem at all bothered by the clipped tones directed towards him and instead smiled lopsidedly.

"Good morning there Naruto."

"I suppose you heard that the new Icha's were in then? News travels fast these days."

"I suppose it does." The customer wondered over to a gleaming bookcase, the heavy scent of old wood and paper an almost relaxing concoction. "You seem to be keeping well."

"And you as well. I heard you passed your first Genin Team not too long ago."

Kakashi sighed, shoulders tensed and head bowed.

"It's...not going to well is it?" Naruto's tone broke, dropping from casual indifference to that of genuine concern - his book forgotten and his eyes firmly raised. "Who are they?"

Kakashi seemed surprised. He'd made it a habit to drop by the book shop every month or so after he'd discovered that his old student had reappeared amongst the musty pages, but the boy rarely responded to anything outside his work... and never had he talked about Shinobi matters.

"Uchiha Sasu-"

"I bet he's just a bucket of fun." Naruto chuckled, rubbing his temples his right hand as he continued to look up at Kakashi.

"The council decided I could teach him how to use the sharingan," He shrugged "And I got Haruno Sakura."

"Never heard of her, or the family... Do you think she's going to last?"

"Truthfully, she has a little promise, but she's unfocused - Haruno is just a young girl after all."

"If she's out on the field, and she's not focused, Haruno will just get killed." Naruto noted dryly with a nonchalant wave of his hand "Young or not."

The older man nodded, disliking the coldness of the Naruto's words but not criticising for fear it would stop the boy from talking. This was, after all, the first proper conversation they had had in a long while, but he couldn't help but wonder exactly _why_. "And a kid called Kensuki."

"You got Tora's nephew? Ouch."

He was a little loud and a little volatile, clearly taking after his aunt in more ways than one, but his parents often tried to dissuade him from taking up the life of a Konoha ninja. They were a calm, respectable family - more involved in agriculture than fighting.

"He's unrefined." Kakashi noted "But no matter how hard I push, they don't act like a team... It's not looking good for them."

"Will you fail this team as well?"

Kakashi frowned, his brow furrowing as he thought about his options. Did he really want to fail them? He felt like he owed it to the village to take care of Sasuke, and Tora to take care of her nephew. Sakura was something he just had to put up with.

"I…I might…I don't know… They're currently on probation after their last mission. Even with the Chuunin Exams coming up I don't think I'd put them forward."

Naruto took a slim brown box from a nearby book case, popped the lid and promptly shoved it under the counter. He nodded as Kakashi explained the poor situation, but didn't offer any advice. There was a moment of silence.

"Are there times when you question-?" Naruto stopped, mid-way through his sentence, and grimaced. Kakashi was more than eager to hear what the boy had to say and made the mistake of asking.

"I didn't hear what you said there."

Naruto's grimace turned into an expression of pained silence, before it melted away and he replied.

"Forget I said anything, please, I have a busy day and some cataloguing to finish by noon. SO if you don't mind..."

"Oh, sure." The older man felt hurt that he was being dismissed so abruptly, especially after it seemed like Naruto was about to open up to him again "I guess I'll see you around."

Naruto nodded, but didn't say another word. Simply watching the Jounin leave the shop with hardened blue eyes. His hands shook as he opened the door to the back room and poured himself a cup of tea. The tea brought back haunting memories, but the doctor said it would dull his nerves. So he drank.

* * *

Edited 03/03/13


	3. The Second Day

Had the day finished so quickly?

From his tall seat in the bookshop, Naruto could see the pale blue sky begin to tinge red and gold, like the leaves on the trees in autumn, spectacle that wouldn't be unfamiliar in the not so distant future. He wondered if Kakashi had decided what to do with his failing Genin team, he knew that the councils were unlikely to allow the Uchiha to be failed completely and Naruto wondered if they would put the boy in to the early Anbu training program. He couldn't decide whether that would be a decent idea or a perilously bad one. He was a testament to the failures of the Anbu system. It made remembered a conversation from a few years back, when Kakashi had first been forced to take a Genin team. A cover-up of his Anbu activities.

* * *

"_What are you going to do then senpai?" The young blonde asked_

_Kakashi shook his head, replacing the first ever Icha Icha book back in his kunai pouch._

"_I'm not really sure, it just doesn't feel right, I don't think they're old enough yet. They have a right to be children before we force them to grow up…"_

_He looked over at his young companion, suddenly painfully aware at just how young this boy was. Had he not deserved a childhood too?_ _Naruto looked wistful for a moment, staring down from their perch at the top of the gargantuan gates to the village._

"_Don't worry senpai…I don't care anymore."_ Naruto smiled, stretching his arms awkwardly above his head which forced Kakashi to remember the injury the young boy had recieved on their last mission. "_So do you think that you will you ever pass a team?"_

_Kakashi chuckled._

"_When I find the right team…I might just pass them..."_

_Naruto nodded, running a hand through his wild blond hair with a sigh. An action which couldn't help but remind Kakashi of how much Naruto looked like his father._

"_They'll have to be pretty special for that, huh.."_

* * *

The sun had begun to dissapear now and the sky was taking a purple hue, and since there were no customers…there was nothing keeping him at the shop any longer. Business had been rather slow that day, not that it was ever hectic. It did have a particularly _seedy_ reputation. He knew that as soon as the word got out about the new, signed, limited edition copies of Icha Icha Paradise that were being sold, the villages perverts were likely to crawl out of the woodwork.

Naruto winced. It would not be pretty.

He breathed out. Unaware that he had been holding his breath. The run-in with Kakashi that day had left him feeling shaken, no matter how much herbal tea he had drunk.

_Just don't think about it. So much easier if you don't remember. If you simply forget…_ But there was something that refused to let him forget. There was something that refused to allow him to forget all the blood that he had shed. At the beginning he had been so young and naïve, he had understood about life and death, Anbu would never have accepted him into their ranks if he did not, but he had never truly understood that what he did affected people indirectly.

The man that had been hired by one political leader to kill another, most likely because he needed the money to feed his family, or care for them if they were sick. Without his income they would starve and die. Naruto would have killed the target if that's what the mission required. Only a handful of failed missions, compared to the hundreds he had completed during his years in Anbu. How many people had been affected indirectly by those missions? How many had starved? Died? Become too ill to care for their own families?

It was the last mission that…

'_No!'_

He shook his head violently and picked up the keys to the shop, his hand trembling a little.

'_No…it's all in the past! I'm sorry…'_

The bell jingled as the door was opened, and Naruto could still hear the thing as he shut and locked it.

'_I never meant for it to turn out like this…'_

Stars begin to flicker into life above the rapidly darkening streets, the moon already filling Konoha with a silver glow and the still people on the street were buzzing with excitement, there was a festival tomorrow. Naruto wouldn't be going, he had never gone to the festival, no matter how much Jiraiya, the Sandaime or Kakashi tried to force him to go.

His house was just up ahead, but he turned down one of the side streets instead. The shaking in his hands hadn't subsided and he didn't feel like going home yet. It wasn't as if anyone would miss him it he came home late. It was dark now, the sky an inky black, stars a stark contrast, shining brightly. He avoided a trio of children who were too busy in their game to notice anyone in their way. He could hear as they disappeared was a girl yelling "We're so gonna get done for this Konohamaru-kun!"

Naruto stopped and looked back in curiosity. Konohamaru? The grandson of the Sandaime Hokage? He strained his eyes to see if he could see the backs of the retreating figures, but they had already disappeared.

'_Last time I saw Konohamaru he must have been about…four or five years old?'_ He laughed softly '_I wonder if he remembers me… I used to see him quite often when he was younger'_

He continued his walk along the street, with no particular destination in mind, managing to skilfully avoid those main road where the most people walked. A cool wind ruffled his hair, making it dance like a field of straw. What he would give to start his life all over again… His feet took him to the outskirts of Konoha, towards the eastern training grounds; he only went there for one reason. The dark marble epitaph stood like a lonely stranger in the clearing, the moonlight reflecting on its smooth surface, the engraved names clearly defined in the stones eerie glow. He crouched down next to the stone and traced a finger down the hundreds of names on the cenotaph.

The first name that he knew.

_Uchiha Obito._

He had been one of his Senpai's best friends, he had died long before Naruto had been born, but he had been the one that had taught Kakashi that friends always come before the rules.

His finger traced further down the marble surface.

Namikaze Minato.

The Yondaime, his father.

"_I'm sorry father…you wanted me to be strong and protect the village…I just can't do it…"_

The next name that he knew.

Kogune Denu.

A team mate of Tora's before she became Anbu. He had been killed by a missing nin on a recon mission. The missing nin was Okini Megiru, the third member of Tora's original genin team. She very rarely spoke about them.

The next name was a fresher scar.

Uryu Asamaru.

Yama.

The details of his death were classified, only those in Anbu and the Hokage himself had known how Yama had died. The only known thing about his death had been that he was killed in action, like the rest of those on the cenotaph. Naruto shook his head bitterly. Did they not understand? Did they not realize that becoming a shinobi only meant death and destruction? Destroying the long awaited peace that others strived so hard to achieve? Why had he once dreamed to be Hokage? He didn't know anymore…was it for respect? Power? Admiration? Fear? It had been a child's dream…nothing more; to be Hokage was to be the leader of the destruction and the destroyer of peace, _nothing more_ than that.

"It was a foolish dream" he whispered in the night, but there was no one around to hear him. He stood to his feet, stretching his hands above his head and yawned. The moon was high up in the jet sky by now, how long had he been out here? Longer than he had planned anyway. The breeze was cooler now, with an edge that wasn't there before. He pushed his hands further into his pockets. The house was cold when he got back, the rooms a silent as tombs.

Naruto was the only thing that moved.

He sat down in his worn armchair, casting a brief glance at the faded green book he had been reading earlier but resisted the urge to read. He heated a cup of water to make tea, but sat and simply watched the vapour trails until they whisped away and the water was cold. The room was given one quick look over before the light was switched off and the silent room was plunged into darkness. Tomb was a fitting word.

Naruto kicked off his shoes and they landed with an audible thunk next to his bed, causing the entire frame to shudder. He undressed and crept under the ice cold blankets, hoping that they would warm up soon. He was sure that ice cubes would be comfortable with this temperature.

Naruto had meant to be home earlier to turn the heating on…but…Well it didn't matter now.

Golden sunlight filtered through the murky glass, shining in the blonde's eyes, waking him up from his peaceful slumber. He cursed before rolling onto his side and stretching. He would have preferred to sleep in, today of all days especially, but he needed to be up and about early, so he didn't get caught in the rush of people shopping for the festival.

Naruto boiled the kettle and grabbed the last miso flavoured instant ramen out of the cupboard, then cursed when he remembered that his shoes were upstairs. Pouring the boiling water into the cup he bolted upstairs and grabbed his shoes from where he had thrown them the night before, and then bolted back down. He cleaned the fork he had used the night before, not bothering to dig out any of the others that he was sure were hidden beneath the mounds of unused, dirty plates and dishes.

One day he would get around to it…just not today.

The ramen was devoured in seconds, leaving an empty cup and yet _another_dirty fork to throw onto the stack of dirty plates. He counted through the money he had left in his wallet, just in case, and then left through the front door. Naruto prayed that he didn't bump into Kakashi or Jiraiya.

The bag rested uncomfortably in his hands, the thin plastic handles digging deep into the flesh of his hands. People already filled the streets, getting ready for the festival that night. He saw something out of the corner of his eye that forced him to stop and take a second look. How long had it been since he had last visited?

Ichiraku's Ramen Stand.

It seemed to be pretty empty…that was good.

He pushed through the crowd towards the ramen stand, wincing as he was crushed between the constantly moving mass of bodies. Ducking down low he managed to squeeze through the crowd, he grabbed one of the stools and vaulted onto it, breathing out a sigh of relief.

"One miso ramen please."

The brown haired woman turned from where she had been cleaning the used dishes that had been used by previous customers, a surprised expression crossing her face.

"Is that you? Naruto-kun?"

How long had it been since she had last seen Naruto? She didn't know the answer, but it had been a long time since the blonde boy had sat in front of the counter and ordered something.

Was it about a year…? A year and a bit since he had last visited…?

Ayame couldn't see the three year old Naruto that used to visit Ichiraku's with the Third Hokage, shouting things like 'One day I'm gonna be Hokage' or 'RAMEN!', this boy…he couldn't really be classed as that boy any longer, he was not the cheerful blond that he had once been. She didn't know what had made him leave the shinobi forces, but it had hurt him, in more than one way. His blond hair was shaggy and unkempt, falling over blue eyes that stared out hollowly from a worn face.

The bowl of steaming ramen was placed in front of her blonde customer.

"So how've you been Naruto-kun?"

The boy looked up from his noodles and shrugged. "Alright I suppose." He shrugged "How about you?"

"Everything's good, we should be getting a lot of customers with the festival on tonight…" she trailed off as she saw him tense up. Then she remembered something.

"It's your birthday today isn't it Naruto-kun?" She smiled as the boy didn't look up, playing with his ramen with a chopstick.

"Yeah…it is…" He muttered, not meeting her eyes.

"Are you doing anything special? Inviting friends around?"

He looked up and shrugged. "Not really, just a quiet night at home. I don't like the crowds."

"So you're not going to the festival tonight then? It would be good fun I promise. I'll treat you to free ramen!" She smiled brightly, but her attempt was in vain, he had already finished his bowl and was standing up..

"I'm not going to the festival; it's a waste of time really…" He began to count out the coins onto the counter, but Ayame waved a hand to stop him.

"It's on the house Naruto-kun" she smiled He looked up and let out a small smile, and Ayame could almost see the younger, happier Naruto, but soon it was replaced by a mask of indifference.

"Thanks Ayame, I might see you soon if there's more free ramen."

Before she could reply he had already melted back into the crowd. She reached down to grab the dirty bowl, and saw that he had forgotten to pick up the coins he had been going to pay with. Ayame looked back to at the jostling crowd, but there was no sign of the young blond that had just occupied the seat in front of her.

Had he left the coins on purpose?

* * *

Edited 03/03/13


	4. The Answer

_Drip_

_Drip_

_Drip_

Every single drip from the tap made all his hair stand on end, jumping up from his seat he stalked over to the offending, infernal kitchen sink and grabbed the leaking faucets with his hands. They groaned pitifully as he jammed them closed, and metal shrieked as they were contorted into foreign shapes, bent in odd directions.

"_Damn!"_

At least water wasn't spraying everywhere.

The lights from the festival caused the sky to light up, making the usual, comforting, inky blackness turn to an orange glow, he wondered what happened at the festival…What did people do? They were supposed to be mourning…remembering those lost…not celebrating like they did. He could hear laughter, and the tinkling of the small bell-like toys the children waved on the sticks and could imagine the lanterns drifting off into the night sky, like man-made stars.

Naruto closed his eyes and breathed out as his resolve wavered.

Perhaps he could just… His eyes snapped open.

What was he _thinking_?

Nestling into the warmth of his arm chair, he rested his head and drifted away.

* * *

When had he fallen asleep? He never remembered falling asleep…and what had woken him up?

_Budum Budum_

He sat very still for a few seconds, his heart beating like a drum in his chest, mouth as dry as the paper in the book that had been thrown to the floor.

_Budum Budum_

Naruto got silently to his feet, padding towards the kitchen door, instinctively making each footstep as noiseless as the last. He restricted the urge to ask if someone was there, waiting in the shadows of his hall…

_Budum Budum_

There!

A noise, if only for a second and the whisper of cloth against skin as someone carelessly shifted their weight from one foot to another…An intruder? Yet he had locked his door earlier...so that meant that whoever was in his hallway was either a ninja, or a very talented lockpick. He glanced around the room for any possible weapons to defend himself…Kunai? Why had he given Kakashi all his damn kunai?

"_I don't need them anymore…"_

_He handed over his kunai pouch._

_The single grey eye looked up at him concerned._

"_You don't have t-"_

_The kunai pouch was thrown at the silver haired man._

"_Take it"_

At the time it had seemed to be the right decision, even yesterday that idea was a _good _idea, but right now this second, that idea had not been _thought through enough._ How was a normal civilian boy supposed to look after himself?

_He would have parents…_ Naruto thought bitterly as he leant into the shadows of the kitchen wall, blending in, as he formulated a plan to combat his late night intruder. All his knives were hidden in the dirty cluster that were his unclean dishes and empty ramen cups, he had no kunai, no shuriken, and he had given his ninjato back when he had left the service of the Black Ops.

That just left Taijutsu or Ninjutsu and he silently cursed. Those where some of the things he had sworn never to use ever again. Perhaps if he just left by a window? He looked up at the grimy windows and tried to remember the occasion when had he last opened them. The rust seemed to have melded them shut from the look of it, they were obviously not on his list of options right now. So maybe he could sneak past? The intruder was making his way carefully up the hall now and his chakra signature well hidden. The only thing that had Naruto alerted to his presence was the small rasping noise as the intruders feet came into contact with the wooden floor. He readied his hands into the correct seal and breathed in.

_Damn! Why does this have to happen?_

"Meisaigakure no _Jutsu" _he whispered, hoping that whoever was creeping up his corridor had not heard him. It was if new life had been poured into his veins, like a refreshing wave that washed away the staleness beneath his skin. But he couldn't allow himself to be overwhelmed by the fresh power coursing through his pathways. This was the only way he could think of that did not involve violence, he had promised that day he would never commit an intentional act of violence towards another human being as long as he lived Now completely unseen, Naruto waited without movement, until the intruder had begun to make his way up the stairs and into the upper rooms. The footsteps came closer still, and now Naruto could see the figure of a full grown man, kunai in hand, creeping down the corridor. Naruto waited for the intruder to step on the squeaky floorboards, but the familiar sound never came and it made his blood run cold. The intruder had scouted the house before, it was the only way he could have known about the floorboard..

"_This is it…"_Naruto thought to himself _"Now or never"_

He stepped carefully from his hiding place, not making a sound. The jutsu might make sure no-one saw you, but they could as sure as hell hear you if you put one foot out of place. The door was in front of him now, the silver blue moonlight looking even more inviting than usual, bathing part of his hall in an otherworldly glow. His breaths were shallow and controlled, each and every footfall silent as falling snow, his pulse should have been racing; like anyone else in that kind of situation, but his pulse was merely quickened, and his mouth a little dry. Warm flesh touched cool metal as his fist enclosed the door handle; he stole a quick look back. No sign of his intruder returning yet, but he had to leave quickly. He threw open the door and the hinges squeaked wildly, echoing around his silent house and Naruto swore. The door was flung shut behind him as his heart beat hard rhythms against his ribcage as he disappeared like a wraith into the darkness of night, ghosting towards the main street with his feet gliding over the street cobbles, like he wasn't a being of this world.

Normally the rooftops would have been a better option, as the streets were usually crowded or blocked off during the festivals, where the roofs were almost always empty, unless there were other shinobi going places as well, but a civilian moving on the roofs at night during a festival attracted a certain amount of _unwanted_ attention. Naruto was certain that he had lost whoever had tried to attack him earlier, but he wouldn't slow down until he reached a main street, where there were more people to fade into… Even if it did mean going to the festival, he didn't have to enjoy himself.

"_There's…too many…people…"_ Naruto thought to himself as he avoided being crushed by the masses of bodies that engulfed him from all sides.

He longed to go back to his house, where there was only him and the silent books, but he wouldn't be able to go back there tonight, just in case whoever it had been earlier had stayed there in wait for him to come back. Naruto needed to find Kakashi, and ask if he could crash at his for the night, but there was no telling where he'd be able to find the one-eyed Jounin teacher. Ichiraku's would have been nice and relaxing right now, but it would be full to the brim with loud, laughing people, and he had left his wallet back in his rooms. As he got towards the main square, the crowd began to thin out a little, which allowing Naruto breathing space and he accepted it gratefully. After 2 years of living a pretty solitary life; so many people in the same place became a bit unnerving. He scanned over the faces of the people surrounding him, searching for the face of the silver haired jounin.

Kakashi always came to the festival…so where was he?

Market stalls lined the street ahead of him, selling all manner of things, from toys and sweets, to clothes and trinkets, people crowded around each one, bartering with the stall owners for the best price. Perhaps Kakashi was along here? Naruto wandered along the street with his hands pressed deep into his pockets.

Why _did_ people come here? He had never thought to ask anyone that before…Why did they come to a festival that celebrated death and destruction…? The street was bathed in a golden glow from the hundreds of fairy lights strung along the walls and the various stands selling their goods, small children, awake far past their usual bedtime, ran through the crowd, weaving in and out of the people, laughing and shouting. The bell toys jingling with their footsteps. Naruto took the opportunity and smiled a little. It was nice to see them so happy and oblivious to the rest of the world, but looking around, it wasn't just the children. Adults had a certain spark in their eyes, smiles on their faces, civilian and shinobi alike… It made no sense, but there was just a..._feeling_ of happiness that surrounded the whole street, if not the whole of Konoha.

He absent mindedly side-stepped a cream blur, a ninken, if his eyes didn't lie, even if this one was a little on the runty side.

"Akamaru! Come back!" Naruto turned to where the voice had come from, but couldn't see whoever it was who had shouted. An Inuzuka? A boy around his own age burst from the crowd, wearing a grey jacket with a black fur lining, looking frantically left and right.

"Mom was joking! Honest!"

Had the ninken run away? He had known an Inuzuka once, she had been a friend of Tora's, not that they had ever really been introduced. Naruto stopped his nostalgia to stare at the feral looking boy, who seemed to be getting hysterical at the loss of his closest friend. Naruto guessed that he and his dog didn't really separate much, and was asking the people around him if they had seen the ninken pass.

Naruto sighed.

"Hey!" he shouted and the Inuzuka turned.

"Your ninken went that way!" Naruto shouted again, pointing towards the street where he had last seen the nin dog. The Inuzuka smiled, canine teeth flashing in the orange light.

"Thanks…?"

"Naruto" the blond replied. It was most likely he would never talk to the Inuzuka again, what was the harm in telling the boy his name? He began to run towards the street that Naruto had pointed out.

"My name's Kiba, Inuzuka Kiba, nice to meet ya Naruto!"

The Inuzuka, Kiba, disappeared after his dog and just like that the encounter was over.

"_Well…that was interesting"_ and wondered what time it was. Byy the height of the moon it was sometime after 11, but he had left his watch behind when he had to escape the house. And _where_in the world was Kakashi? The last market stall held no sign of the elusive man and Naruto couldn't help but sigh for what felt like the millionth time that night. Perhaps Ichiraku's wasn't such a bad idea. It was certainly no worse than sitting out here in the busy street, even if he had already been to Ichiraku's that morning. It was just up ahead, he could see the sign from where he was on the street, and it didn't seem too full, there were only a few customers at the counter. Perhaps it was too late for some people to eat, and the plethora of sweet treat stalls were no doubt drawing away the usuals.

His stomach rumbled, painfully reminding him that he had forgotten to eat that evening. There was one free seat, at the very edge on the left, he ran and vaulted on to it before anyone else got there before him.

"A miso please."

Ayame looked down and her face split into a wide, childish grin. "You came Naruto-kun!"

He looked up, face awkwardly trying to smile like it had forgotten how. "I guess I did after all."

"One extra large Birthday Ramen coming up!"

Naruto continued to smile awkwardly, before allowing his smile to drop as Ayame turned her attention to cooking. The mouth-watering, savoury smells drifting from the pans.

"Naruto-kun?" another voice asked and a single grey creased into an upside down U shape. "It's nice to see you out at the festival." It was then that the silver haired Jounin noticed the amount of killing intent the blond radiated. "_What…what did I do…?" _

"You've..been..here the…whole time…?" The blonde hadn't even turned his way, he was staring at the counter in front of him, face dead-pan and expressionless, but with hunched, tense choulders.

"Uhh" Kakashi rubbed the back of his head. Which answer would get him killed? "I…just…got here?"

The blonde looked up and nodded, face still serious, but Kakashi felt like he had avoided a death sentence. He was surprised when he heard him say "I was just wondering…I need a place to crash tonight, can I stay at yours?" and Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"What happened?" he asked the young boy warily.

"Well…someone broke in so I escaped." Naruto shrugged "No big deal."

Kakashi lost his bored, half awake look, now he looked like he was ready to go and break some necks."Were they armed?" He growled.

"If a kunai counts." Naruto shrugged, leaning against the counter as Ayame delivered his bowl of ramen. Their conversation paused for a moment as the blond took a bite, despite Kakashi wanting to clarify the situation, and they were soon interrupted.

"Waaaatcha doin' Kakashi-sensei?" A voice questioned childishly. A boy with a wild mop of dark blonde hair and green eyes popped over Kakashi's shoulder. His name was Hikuro Kensuki, nephew of Hikuro Neruki, otherwise known as Tora.

"I'm doing nothing Kensuki-kun, absolutely nothing…"

His green eyes swivelled to Naruto.

"And who's this Kakashi-sensei?"

"A friend, Naruto meet Kensuki." He leaned backwards, so the other two members of Team 7 were visible.

"The pink haired girl is Haruno Sakura." She was pretty, Naruto thought, even if her forehead was a little on the large side but Sakura was currently focusing all her attention on the other member of Team 7.

"And the last member…" Kakashi hoped that Naruto wouldn't react to obviously "Uchiha Sasuke."

Naruto nodded, he had been friends with another Uchiha once. His second Anbu captain after Kakashi himself had been Uchiha Itachi. When Itachi had abandoned the village; Naruto had been promoted as the next Anbu captain for the squad. He had protested, refused and downright rejected the job with a vengeance, but after the Sandaime himself had asked the blond, he had no choice but to accept the promotion. But Itachi's desertion of the village had hurt him deeply.

"Interesting bunch you have there Sensei." Naruto nodded in acknowledgement, slipping in an old term which felt fitting for the situation. Kakashi hadn't been his Sensei in years.

"Sensei?" Kensuki opened his eyes even wider than they already were, making him look like an owl "Does that mean Kakashi-sensei is your teacher too?"

Naruto stopped and looked up at the fidgeting child. "No… it was a slip of the tongue" he said calmly, before he turned back to Kakashi. "So can I stay at yours?"

Kakashi nodded and laughed "It'll be just like the old days huh?"

"Yeah…" Naruto turned wistfully to his huge bowl of ramen "Just like the old days…."

Kakashi turned on the light to the spare room, before walking over to one of the cupboards to pull out some spare linen. "You can crash here, the fridge is yours, get up whenever you want"

"It really _is j_ust like the old days…" Naruto noted and Kakashi felt like it _really_ _was _like the old days and they'd just come back from a mission, those were always the rules when they'd crashed and burned after missions. Kakashi turned back towards the door.

"Wait…Kakashi."

"Hmmm?" Kakashi turned back to face the young blonde.

"Why do people celebrate the festival….? Isn't it sad for them?" Naruto looked up, and for the first time in a long time Kakashi saw a flicker of the shinobi the boy had once been. "I just don't get it."

"It is sad, but we honour the dead. We only won that day because of their help, their sacrifice, so we should be happy we're alive. We owe it to them." Naruto frowned, cerulean blue eyes staring. "They sacrificed themselves so that we could live happily." Kakashi continued.

"We should…be happy…?" Naruto's face turned towards the bed, clearly lost in thought. "Thank you." He murmured finally, but he never raised his head.

Kakashi nodded and smiled."Good night Naruto-kun"

The light flicked off.

* * *

Haha...finally Naruto's question that's been bugging him has been answered! and I fixed a few errors here and there...

Thanks all of you who are reading this! It means so much to me!


	5. The Unexpected

Sunlight filtered through the newly cleaned glass, shining directly into the sleeping boy's eyes and for a brief second he regretted cleaning everything up….but only for a second. Swinging his feet around, he got up from his bed and walked towards the wardrobe. This time the floorboard didn't squeak, but had been taken up and a new board been nailed down in its place, Kakashi's spending spree at the book store had helped to pay for that. The kitchen counter was visible for the first time in a long time, but only after Naruto had spent hours delving out the jungle that was old ramen cups and dirty cutlery with the help of a rather reluctant ninja and his team. He had even gone to the trouble of hiring them as a D rank mission, even if the Genin weren't impressed they had to do a D rank, it was the only way for them to get a C rank or higher after their probationary period.

Jiraiya had sent back some money, and the book store had been going pretty well recently, since people had bought the newly released Icha Icha books as early Christmas presents, and a movie was on the way…and with the money he made, he'd done up the house. The kitchen had been cleaned, as had all the floors and windows, the floorboards had been repaired, the taps had been fixed, he had bought a few pieces of new furniture…It was going quite well in Naruto's opinion.

Kakashi's team were out of the village, having completed enough D rank missions to be given their first C rank, escorting a merchant back to his house on the outskirts of Suna. It was simple escort mission; no doubt they would be back soon.

_"Am I missing them? …I don't even know them that well"_

They had been around the house helping for a week, well…Kensuki had just shouted a lot…but missing them? Kensuki would provide the main part of the conversation, waving his arms excitedly like an overactive windmill, a wide grin of childish abandon on his face, as he told Naruto about how great a shinobi he would be, and how one day he would be the next Hokage. Naruto had just nodded politely, rather than telling the Genin what life as a ninja was really like.

Sakura would sit around, staring at the Uchiha like a love sick puppy and occasionally adding her two cents worth to the conversation as well. The Uchiha had just stared darkly at Naruto, barely saying a sentence the whole time they had worked there, probably hating every second he and his team spent together. Kakashi was worried that perhaps Sasuke had remembered that Naruto had once stopped by his house to talk to Itachi…but he was sure that Sasuke wouldn't remember such small details as that.

_"Two years with nobody…then no more than a week with people around and I miss their company?"_

He shook his head.

_"Since when did I get so sentimental?"_

Suppressing a smile, he walked to the front door, he had spent enough time inside.

* * *

A week passed.

"…And then I defeated him all on my own!" Kensuki finished. A fist knocked him off the stool.

"You did not Kensuki! Sasuke saved us all! You didn't help one little bit" A mad looking Sakura stood over the poor boy, who was nursing a purple bruise on the side of his head. Sasuke was too busy ignoring everybody. Kakashi had actually passed _this_team? Their teamwork was so warped it was…just inexistent.

They had all decided to meet up for ramen at Ichiraku's to celebrate the completion of their first relatively-successful C mission. He had listened to Kensuki talk non-stop about the mission, about the things they had seen and the food they had eaten and about the unforgiving landscape of Suna.

"So what did you do while we were away Naruto-kun?" he asked

Naruto shrugged _"missing the company."_was what he wanted to say, but instead he blurted "Work."

The Uchiha leant forward, directing his gaze at Naruto. "You work? Don't you go to school or something?"

_"Well that's was the most I've ever heard him say."_

"No…I used to go to school-" that was _kind_ of the truth "-but I left."

Kensuki's mouth turned into an O shape. "You left school?" Sakura asked as her jade green eyes widened in amazement.

Naruto nodded "Yeah…"

"That's sooo unfaiiir!" Kensuki whined comically, crossing his arms and pouting in Naruto's direction.

"Was it the Ninja Academy?" Sasuke surprised Naruto again by asking another question. What had got the Uchiha so talkative all of a sudden? Naruto bit his lip. _Damn all Uchiha's_.

"No…It was the civilian school."

"Why'd ya leave?" Kensuki asked, his eyes like saucers, it was kinda creepy.

"I didn't agree with it" If only Kensuki knew what they were really talking about.

"Didn't your parents force you to go back?" Sakura asked, for once her back turned to the Uchiha.

"I don't have parents." He almost laughed at the Uchiha's expression. _"What? He expected himself to be the only orphan…? At least he_ _still_ has_ a __brother__"_

"I wondered why we didn't see your parents when we were tidying up" Sakura added "I thought they might be on a mission…or something."

"Well that's decided then," Kensuki stood up and slammed his hands down on the counter, earning a death glare from Ayame and Teuchi "You're coming to my house tonight for dinner!"

"W-what?" Naruto looked at the boy "For dinner…?"

"Yeah! Even Aunt Neruki said she would be there!"

_'Aunt Neruki…? Tora? This isn't going to end well…'_

* * *

7 o'clock by the Academy gates…that's when Kensuki had said to meet him in this exact location. No doubt the boy was going to be a little late. Naruto laughed at his situation, he hadn't seen Neruki in two years, after he'd refused to talk to her, and now he was going to a family dinner with her? Did fate have a twisted sense of humour? The sounds of running feet met his ears and he glanced down at the watch on his wrist.

_"Not too late then…"_

"I'm so sorry…I forgot how long it takes to get to the Academy!" Kensuki apologised, out of breath.

"I wasn't waiting long…" a lie…but did it really matter if the kid was late?

"Mom! Dad! I'm back"

He hoped that neither of them recognized him from his Anbu days…He had been around enough times at least for them to remember his face, but it had been 2 years. Was Tora not here yet?

"We're just about ready to start serving…bring your friend through" Naruto heard a female voice say; obviously this was Kensuki's mom.

"Come on!" Kensuki all but dragged Naruto into the dining area.

At the head of the table sat Kensuki's father and Tora's brother, Hikuro Taihei. He looked very similar to Neruki, except his eyes were the golden colour of his hair, rather than his sister's brown, and his hair was a slightly more vibrant.

"So you must be Kensuki's new friend?" Taihei hadn't changed since the last time Naruto had seen him, his voice was so relaxing and his personality so calm…Where had Kensuki come from?

"Yes. I am Uzumaki Naruto."

The older man's eyes screwed up in concentration. "Have I seen you around before Naruto-kun?"

_Goddamn_ Taihei for being so observant. "I don't think so Sir."

"Oh I'm sorry. Sit down, sit down, the food should be ready soon" he sighed.

"Is Aunt Neruki coming?" Kensuki asked excitedly as they sat themselves around the table.

"She should be…but who _knows_ what she does anymore…" Taihei chuckled sadly. Naruto perked his ears. Neruki had always put her family first, so what was wrong?

A woman with long, dark brown hair came through the doorway, carrying a tray full of various steaming dishes. Her light jade eyes were full of humour, but she seemed pretty relaxed, smiling kindly at Kensuki and her husband. Naruto felt that he was intruding in this family moment; he wanted to be any place but here.

"Well I hope you like ramen Naruto-kun" she smiled at him, including him in their moment of happiness "Kensuki said that you liked it, so I cooked it especially for you!"

A smile broke across his face, hoping that it didn't look too forced or awkward. He was surprised that Kensuki even noticed, he seemed to be too busy shouting things and waving his arms in the air to notice much about other people.

"Thank you Kensuki, M'am."

"No problemo Naruto-kun." Kensuki grinned, not a hint of awkwardness about his expression and Naruto couldn't help but feel jealous about the ease with which he could display his emotions to others. The bowls were set down on the table.

"Well tuck in then boys" Taihei smiled, gesturing at the food.

_Where was Neruki?_

Ten minutes into the meal, and a fair few bowls of ramen later, there was a knock at the door. Taihei stood up. "I'll go get it…be right back" The sound of a door being opened, and then a squeal of delight, then rapid footsteps and a figure launched itself at Izumi, Taihei's wife.

"Izu-chan!"

".."

"Kensuki-kun!" Kensuki was then glomped by the speeding figure.

"Hi Auntie Neruki!" It was more than obvious where Kensuki got his hyper personality from.

"And who's..."

Deep brown eyes met with cerulean blue, and various emotions flickered through the brown eyes at a million miles an hour, before Naruto was knocked to the floor by a well aimed glomp from Tora.

"Naruto!" Everybody watched as their guest was smothered by Neruki's suffocating glomps.

"Ahh..Neruki-chan? I think you're suffocating the guest." Taihei pointed out. Tora finally let go, a smile plastered over her face, looking like an older version of Kensuki.

"How do you know Naruto?" Kensuki asked his aunt.

"Well…uh…" She smiled and scratched the back of her head "Long story…far too long…"

"Well...it's pretty early yet-" Taihei started, but he was cut off by his sister.

"And miss out asking what's happened in my lovely family's life?" But her fingers told a different story. Anbu hand code, it was the foundation of all Anbu missions; you couldn't run through a mission brief just before killing someone and alert them to your presence…

-'_Afterwards…you have some explaining to do'-_

Naruto sighed.

_-'I look forward to it Tora'-_

_-'If you don't…I _will _hunt you down this time Kitsune'-_

* * *

The meal passed without incident. It was late now, around ten. Kensuki yawned.

"I think it's time for bed for some people." Taihei remarked, his eyes also sagging slightly with fatigue, obviously Kensuki was a handful. Kensuki protested a little before he was forced to bed by Izumi.

"Sorry Naruto-kun, but we're going to bed now."

Naruto stood. "Thank you for inviting me" He bowed.

"Thank you for being so polite Naruto-kun" Taihei smiled "Feel free to come again whenever you like. Are you staying imouto?" Taihei asked his sister.

"Sorry Taihei-kun." She grinned "I got an important mission early tomorrow, from the Hokage himself."

"A shame" Taihei shrugged "Kensuki really misses you when you're gone."

"He's a ninja now, he can deal with it." Izumi and Kensuki had disappeared, leaving only Naruto, Taihei and Neruki. "Shall I walk you home Naruto-kun?" Taihei asked, obviously completely unaware that Naruto could take care of himself.

"It's alright brother, I'm going that way. I can take him for you." Neruki offered embraced her, placing a single kiss on her forehead "Come back safely."

"So how've you been Naru?"

He shrugged then stretched his hands out in front of him."Bored…I see you're still in Anbu"

"Yeah…There's not else much now, especially after I got promoted" Naruto looked up, a hint of surprise flashing across his face.

"A promotion?"

"You are now looking at Tora-taichou" she bowed, flourishing her arms wildly, a huge grin plastered across her face. Naruto smiled, chuckling a little as he clapped slowly.

"A squad captain? Well done Tora!"

"Hmm…I took a lot longer than I thought it would…it only took you a year to be promoted Kitsune." She stuck her tongue out at the young blond.

"I had…extra help."

She raised an eyebrow. "You just had good teachers, that's nothing special"

Naruto's head wilted, his eyes, once happy, looked pitifully lost. "Maybe…but after merging with the Kyuubi…" he trailed off. There was a long awkward silence, filled by the footfalls of the two, as they walked side by side, down the dark, empty streets of Konoha.

"Taihei seemed pretty worried about you" Naruto pointed out, breaking the awkward silence.

"Hmm…he heard about my promotion a few weeks ago" she sighed "He's a pacifist, and he gets worried about all the fighting I do."

"Ahh…" Naruto nodded "I remember him fussing over you when we got back from the mission to Iwa, he acted like you were about ten."

She blushed and laughed. "I remember that …I'm just so glad nobody else was there to see that, my reputation as a bad-ass Anbu would have crumbled to dust that day." She turned her attention back to her companion "Come on! Lighten up a little ya know?" She waved her hands in the air, and Naruto _knew _that Kensuki had gotten his personality from his rather erratic aunt "You're so gloomy sometimes" She pouted "You smile, but most of the time you don't mean it."

"Do I have to mean it?" he asked, a rueful smile flickering across his face.

She looked shocked "Even Kitsune knew when to kick back and have a good time Naruto-kun! Remember the party?" She laughed "Aww Kitsune…it was awesome! Remember?" She began to laugh, but stopped, trailing off into silence after she realized she was laughing alone.

"Please..." Naruto had stopped walking, just staring at the floor, refusing to meet her eyes "Never call me that again." His voice was like re-enforced steel. Tora stopped walking as well, her usually ecstatic eyes, were half closed in pain.

"Sumimasen Naruto." Neither moved, nor made any attempts to break the awkward silence.

_"So this is what it's like now…"_Neruki thought sadly _"Is what _he _said really true?"_ The biting wind whistled down the narrow empty street, breaking the depressed trance both of them were immersed in."So you've got a big mission tomorrow…" Naruto started "Wanna tell me the details?"

Tora chuckled, the moment before disappearing in an instant, as if it had never existed. "You know it's against the rules."

Naruto grinned.

"Well…it's an S-rank secret." Tora chuckled "Apparently..." She checked the street, looking both left and right to check it was safe, and that nobody was eavesdropping on their conversation. Once she was happy that there was nobody listening, she whispered."…Orochimaru has been sighted, around Otogakure."

"I see." Naruto nodded with clenched fists "Well let's hope somebody at least manages to kill that snake."

"The mission is recon only Ki-…Naruto." She sighed miserably. It was common knowledge amongst the Anbu that Naruto had promised to be the one to kill the snake sannin. There were only a few people who knew the reason why, and even less truly understood why he wanted to kill the man with his own two hands. "Shame." Naruto breathed, his breath hanging momentarily in the air before dissipating.

"You harbour too much hate." Tora cautioned in a worried tone "You want peace but…"

"I know." Hardened blue eyes met worried brown "I can handle it."

"What is the point of hating someone just because they think differently from you?" She growled, unconsciously clenching her fists.

"You approve of what that _thing_ has done?" Naruto yelled "You agree with senseless pain and torture for a selfish cause?" Tora stepped backwards, surprised at the amount of hate in the boys' voice, each word like a blade… "Then perhaps you shouldn't stay here!" He roared "Perhaps you should run off to that snake you seem to be protecting!"

"Naruto…Please…"

The blood was thundering in his ears, all he could see was her lips moving, and her eyes beginning to fill with tears. _"Make it stop."_ She was crying now…what was he even saying to her? He couldn't tell… _"Please make it stop."_ Why wasn't she leaving already? Why was she still there? _"Please..."_ She was moving towards him now, she should have been afraid, but there was no hint of fear in those eyes. "Make me...stop." It was a whisper, but to his ears it was a shout. He forced his eyes shut; he didn't want her pity, or her forgiveness, as he deserved neither.

Warmth.

"It's okay Naruto-kun." She whispered in his ear "It's okay."

He felt the walls in his mind crumble as he sank to his knees in silence, yet he didn't even shed a single tear.

* * *

*Cries* Lets hope Naruto feels better next chapter! But who's this 'He' Tora was talking about? And why did Naruto get so upset? *Evil laugh*

Now for some Q's & A's, though some might not make sense after I changed the chapter.

**Why Naruto is so afraid of an intruder coming in his house even though he could probably kill him or her?**From SpeeDemon

Well...Naruto isn't scared really, he knows that he could take the intruder out with just a finger, or a spoon, depending on how he's feeling, but he made promises to himself after he left Anbu not to use ninjutsu, or taijutsu or genjutsu to hurt another living being.

**I must know how team seven will react when they find out who Naruto truly is!**From christina

You shall find out, because that's always _my_ personal favorite part in a story like this...

**Do the villagers hate Naruto for the fox or something? Because he seems to go where ever he wants and not be bothered?** From Inugo Kurosaki

In the cannon series, he's in the village a lot, causing mayhem at every opportune moment, but in this story, he's pretty much been raised as a shinobi from a very young age so the villagers haven't really seen him much, and as he grew up, he went on missions in other countries, so not many villagers knew that he was the demon container...even if he's merged with Kyuubi now.!

**So... Is Naruto gonna get dragged along on a mission somehow with Team 7? Is Sarutobi gonna visit him?** From Lord Ezra'eil

Who knows? And yes, your idea from the review is awesome! You should write it yourself! You'd get loadsa reviews I can just tell!

**Why would Naruto go to a festival that celebrates the death of his father and the cursing of his existence with a demon?**From InARealPickle

He was forced out of the house, because he didn't want to hurt the intruder.

**Will Anything be happening anytime soon to knock him out of his funk or are we going to have to wait like 6 months for the invasion?**From InARealPickle

Is this chapter an answer XD? And the Invasion? You'll just have to wait...

Does this answer anyone and everyone's questions? If you want to ask more questions about this story, just send it in a review! I shall answer them in the next chapter!

And thank you to everybody who just said my story is great! It made this chapter a lot easier to write with so many nice reviews! ^_


	6. The Exams?

"The Chunin exams? Already?" Naruto raised an eyebrow in Kakashi's direction, surprised.

"Well…."

Naruto laughed, eyes sparkling momentarily, making them an even more vibrant blue than they usually were."See? I told you that you liked them!" The younger man seemed so much more relaxed than usual, more prone to rare smiles and rarer laughter.

"Do you think they can do it Naruto?"

"I've never seen them train so I wouldn't know..."

"Well there's a solution to that… train with them"

Naruto's eyes took a more serious light "..With them? "It was a wistful whisper.

"It wouldn't do them any harm" Kakashi shrugged "And it won't do you any either"

"_Should I? If I help them all…there's less chance that they will die on the battlefield"_ From what his senpai had told him, they were all still a bit rough around the edges. Kensuki needed more work on his ninjutsu…which was to put it nicely, in dire need of attention. Sakura… she had good intellect, when she wasn't focusing on the Uchiha, but everything else needed work. The Uchiha…his taijutsu style needed perfecting and Naruto had experience with fighting and exploiting the flaws of the basic Uchiha style…"But…." The blonde sighed, his shoulders drooping in defeat "Maybe"

The silver haired jounin smiled. "There's a training session tomorrow morning, at 8 o'clock, training ground 7"

Naruto nodded had he got himself into?

* * *

He shut the door, wincing as the sunlight shone a bit too brightly in his half asleep eyes.

7:50a.m. Of course Kakashi wouldn't be there until 10 a.m at the earliest, but he was sure the lack of a sensei wouldn't stop Team 7 from training.

"Hey Naruto!"He turned, vaguely surprised that there was anyone passing his house so early that knew him. "Kakashi-sensei told me you were coming to watch us train!" Kensuki shouted, waving an arm in greeting "Finally decide to become a ninja?"

"Yeah…something like that"

A curious brown box followed close behind Kensuki, stopping every time the boy did. "Well…uh…you got something following you there" Naruto said, pointing at the stalker box. The box exploded with a cloud of bright, multicoloured smoke.

"You got –cough- us –cough-" From inside the box emerged three figures; one of them was unmistakably Konohamaru, the second a girl with long red pigtails that stood up at odd angles and rosy cheeks, the third, a sickly boy with a runny nose.

"They've been following me the whole way" Kensuki sighed overdramatically.

"And –cough- I bet you didn't see us –cough-huh?" Konohamaru…coughed.

"Uhmm…" Kensuki couldn't reply to that.

"Hey what's going on guys?" An undeniably female voice asked.

"Oh…hey Sakura " Naruto greeted. The girl smiled pleasantly back at him, but when Kensuki raised a hand in greeting… "Shut it." Naruto felt for the kid as his face fell, the happy grin replaced by a unhappy frown.

"So boss!" Konohamaru turned to Kensuki "You said you'd play ninja with us!"Kensuki rubbed the back of his head "I…I did?"

"Yeah!" the snotty nosed boy yelled. An evil aura surrounded Sakura, and her eyes flashed evilly."Play ninja?" she raised a fist and poor Kensuki flinched "That's so pathetic!" Her fist flew towards the boy.

"Boss! Let's run for it! The monster's gone crazy!" Konohamaru yelled, seeing it all as a game. That set the pinkette right off the wall."Why you come back here!"She began to chase the four, her fist raised ready to blast them to oblivion, and then Konohamaru hit something…something tall, and black, and… young boy was lifted into the air.

"That hurt punk".

Which way had they gone?

In their mad dash for survival, Naruto had lost track of which way the five had here? Nope…Kensuki was close, he could hear him yelling, and Konohamaru too.

"_Nothing much for it then…"_Naruto put on an impressive amount of speed, suddenly turning from a running boy into a speeding !

But who were they?

"…you leaf shinobi are all wimps"

He looked at the darkly dressed boy that held the Sandaime's grandson, and a quick glimpse at the hatai-ate classed him as a genin from him stood a girl dressed in purple, her hair ties up in spiky pony tails. Had there been one more boy there, Naruto could have safely classified them as the children of the current Kazekage of Suna.

"Konohamaru!" the two other children yelled, unable to do anything due to the fright they felt, keeping their feet locked to the spared at glance at Sakura and Kensuki, they two were locked in place, only able to watch as Konohamaru dangled helplessly in the tall boys' grip.

"And you're all annoying…" From this distance, Naruto could see the sinister smile that covered the older boys face. "…and I just wanna break you in half"

"_Just a few more seconds Konohamaru" _Naruto thought silently to himself _"Even if it does show me up… it was bound to happen eventually…and this Suna nin is serious"_

"First I'll take care of this one" He pulled back a fist "And then I'll take care of the o-"

The Suna nin was pushed a pace backward, a hand unconsciously going to his bleeding lip. Konohamaru scrambled back towards the group.

"Naruto!" Sakura yelled, now aware of who had saved the younger boy.

"They're shinobi Naruto! Come back" Kensuki yelled, his eyes wide, not with excitement or happiness, but fear.

"You should listen to them you know, punk" The purple markings on the boys face made his stare twisted.

"Uzumaki Naruto"

"Why do I want to know your name?"

The blonde shrugged "It's customary for the loser to know who beat him"

The Suna nin laughed "The name's Subaku no Kankuro"

"_So he is one of the Kazekage's children!"_ Kankuro looked down at the blonde boy, leaning in closer to whisper in the smaller boys' ear.

"And I'm a shinobi"

"Well…" Naruto whispered back "Ever hear of the Piercing Wind?"

Naruto wished he could see the look that he knew crossed the Subaka's face. Peircing Wind…it had been his Anbu moniker, but he had earned it in Sunagakure, in a SS Rank mission to assassinate the Head of the Suna Anbu, Yarimaki. Naruto whispered, his hand seal almost unseen. Kankuro began to cough, clutching at his throat, stepping backwards towards were his sister, Temari no Subaku, stood, a look of concern on her face. Naruto turned to his right, smiling at the red head who hung from a tree branch.

"Gaara no Subaku" He nodded and turned towards Sakura and Kensuki. Sasuke Uchiha stayed where he was on the branch of the tree, rock poised for throwing.

_Had that been a hand seal Naruto had used?_

Gaara reappeared in a swirl of sand next to his siblings "You're an embarrassment to the village Kankuro" the red head said, his voice devoid of any emotion but hate "You were defeated by a civilian"

Naruto suddenly saw the danger…if Gaara found out that Kankuro was under a genjutsu… Forming the seals discreetly, he whispered "_Kai._" softly. Kankuro coughed once more, before taking in what felt to him like his first clean breath.

"We'll be going now" Gaara said quietly.

"Wait!" Sakura yelled "Do you have permission to enter the village?!"

"Of course" Temari laughed "Don't you know what's happening?"

"Well…" Kensuki started…

"_Of course…the chunin exams"_ Naruto thought _"Kakashi hasn't told them about it?"_

"It's the chunin exams punk" Kankuro told them, leering at the younger genin.

"Chunin? Exams?" Kensuki turned to Sakura "Do you know what it is Sakura-chan?" For once the pinkette didn't hit him.

Temari grinned at her brother "They have no clue…" turning back to the group, she sneered "We'll see you there…better hope you're not against us" Gaara stood silently, staring, but not at either of the genin, he was staring directly at Naruto.

"_The Ichibi, Shukaku…" _Naruto sighed _"The bloodlust is just far too obvious"_ The sand sibling turned and began to walk away, without so much as even a farewell.

"Wait!" Sasuke shouted, jumping down from his previous perch "Your name?"

"Who me?" Temari blushed deeply "Well I'm-"

"Not you" Sasuke cut off, then pointed at the red head "Him"

"Subaku no Gaara" the boy with the ringed eyes replied "And you?"

"Uchiha…Uchiha Sasuke"

* * *

The Konohamaru Corps had gone home, and Team 7 was lounging around the Training Ground waiting for their sensei. Sasuke wouldn't stop staring at him now, even when Naruto looked up, he refused to make eye contact.

"_Stop looking at me..."_

The Uchiha kept staring.

"_Stop staring…"_

The Uchiha blinked, and Naruto relaxed a little.

"_What's the deal Kakashi-senpai?"_

Ten past eleven. The Uchiha got up and walked over.

"Can I talk to you a moment please Uzumaki"

Naruto got to his feet.

"Sure _Uchiha_"

"Over there" Sasuke pointed to the woods "Privately"

"Why Uchiha…?" Naruto fluttered his eyelashes suggestively "I never knew you liked me like that!"

"Get serious."

"Sure …sure"

"What was that back there" The Uchiha asked concern visible in his slate grey eyes.

"What the joke?" Naruto laughed good naturedly "It was only a joke Uchiha"

"No…back when you confronted the Suna nin"

"What about it?" Naruto asked, outwardly, his face only showed puzzlement, but inside his head was working at a hundred miles an hour.

"_Damn all Uchiha's and their goddamn intellect"_

"Your hand, it looked like a hand seal for a genjutsu…An A rank genjutsu"

"Really?!" Naruto frowned "I don't remember doing anything like that…perhaps you didn't see right?" He would give up the game eventually, but he would not let the Uchiha win this one, not now.

"Hn"

"_Now that's more like an Uchiha…"_

"I'll keep an eye on you Uzumaki…" He stalked off, leaving the blonde alone in the clearing.

"Sure you will Sasuke " A grin crossed his face "Sure you will…"

He followed the Uchiha back to the training ground.

_"This will be interesting..."_


	7. The Training Grounds

Where is he?" Kensuki whined, plucking repeatedly at the grass by his feet. Team 7 and Naruto sat around the training ground, waiting for the perpetually late Jounin.

_"Come on Senpai…I need to see what these kids can do…"_

Naruto sat a little way from the Genin, back rested against a nearby tree. He had to say, he was pretty surprised that the Uchiha wasn't training already with the amount of times he had come back from night patrol and come across the child training with Katon Jutsus. He remembered being vaguely impressed at the power of the Jutsus the Academy student had produced.

_"Did Itachi-Senpai ever teach him the-."_

The Uchiha stood up abruptly, cutting the blondes' train of thought."Why should we wait for _him_?"

Sakura leapt to her feet, eager to agree with the dark eyed boy. "Yeah!"

Naruto resisted the temptation to roll his eyes; he was sure that if Sakura stood on her own two feet just once, she would be a more than proficient Konoichi.

"We_ should_ train…" Kensuki added, pulling himself from the patch of ground where he had been sitting. "But…" Sakura looked around the empty clearing "Perhaps Ninjutsu would be a bit _too _much, if anyone got too badly hurt…." Naruto gained a little more respect for the apparently air-headed Genin.

"_H_n" The Uchiha was _not_ amused.

"_If I didn't know any better."_ Naruto grinned _"I would have thought the Uchiha was annoyed."_

"So Taijutsu then?" Kensuki asked, looking from Sasuke to Sakura.

"I suppose…" The Uchiha shrugged. Naruto saw the flicker of fear in Sakura's eyes.

_"So I guess Taijutsu isn't a strong point for her."_

"Sakura!" He called "Come over here and explain what they're doing!" She smiled, obviously grateful for the excuse to sit out, and ran towards the tree, sitting in the grass next to Naruto.

"Well Taijutsu is hand to hand combat…." He drowned her out, nodding every so often if he needed to. "…And Kensuki uses a style called 'Kabushi no mai." Naruto smiled…So Tora-chan had taught Kensuki her own style? It couldn't have been better.

"And Sasuke-kun…" She trailed off, a small frown on her face "I don't know…but it will beat Kensuki!"

The blonde sighed, but a smile was still on his were problems, but they would be easy to iron out. He understood why Kakashi had passed the team.

"Ready?" Kensuki asked, innocent eyes staring in the Uchiha's direction.

"I should ask you the same thing…"

Kensuki grinned, then sliding his right foot into stance, bringing his hands up into a defensive position. The Uchiha stood, staring. Sighing, Kensuki rolled his eyes.

"Do you ever strike the first blow Sasuke?"Kensuki covered the ground between them in a few seconds, fist poised ready for striking.

The Uchiha dodged to his left, avoiding the aimed fist with ease, before returning a blow of his own to Kensuki's rib , the younger of the two boys regained his breath, before sliding his foot back.

"Still not good enough…"

_"Kensuki is a proficient Taijutsu user; his attacks are usually well aimed..." Kakashi had sighed "His style is lacking something..."_

He added it to his mental list of things to do, but didn't take his eyes of the two Genin…there was something that just said that not everything was being shown. The Uchiha ran towards the other boy, and Naruto winced in pain as the Uchiha's fist connected, followed by a foot, and then a round house kick that sent Kensuki flying to the ground.

Spitting blood, Kensuki got back to his feet.

"It's getting a bit rough for Genin...isn't it?"

Kensuki forward, the smaller boy connected a hit, but the next was blocked by an annoyed looking Uchiha, who sent the boy sprawling for the third time.

The blonde under the tree realised there were two problems, one was Kensuki.

He was good at the style, but it had been invented for an Anbu by an Anbu, not for a Genin who didn't have enough speed or power to complete the attacks.  
Perhaps he could teach Kensuki a _different_ way to use the style…

The second was the Uchiha.

Did people just _let_ him win?

It made his fists itch just thinking about it.

He hissed as Kensuki missed a valuable opening in Sasuke's defence, and was surprised when Sakura hissed too.

_"She saw it?"_

Kensuki laid back, stretching his bruised and battered limbs out on the grass.

"So you enjoyed it Naruto?" the boy asked the blonde.

"Yeah…it was cool"

Sasuke was stood still, waiting for their Sensei to arrive. Naruto frowned, Teamwork was important…Why did the Uchiha never join in?

"You remember Aunt Neruki?"He turned back to Kensuki, wondering where this conversation was going. "She told me about the Team she heard of…" He lowered his voice to a whisper "_In Anbu_."

_"Oh no Tora-chan…please say…"_ Naruto thought.

Kensuki nodded sagely, like it was a top secret matter.

"Go on…" Naruto said, not liking the turn the conversation had taken.

"Well, she told me…about a young boy who was one of the elite, he was called-" He looked left and right _"Kitsune."_

_"Tora-chan…you are so dead"_

"And he was a really good ninja; rumour has it that he was next in line to be Hokage….and then he disappeared."

"Does anyone know what happened?" Sakura asked, interested.

"Aunt Neruki said that he lives in Konoha still…but as a normal civilian"

"He left?"

Kensuki nodded "Obasan said that Kitsune was the best she had ever seen…and Obasan is good"

"Kitsune…" Sasuke whispered, and Naruto's ears pricked up "I think…. I think I met him once"

"You did?! Oh wow Sasuke-kun! You're so _cool_!"

Kensuki looked a little deflated.

"When did you meet him Uchiha?" Naruto asked, hoping that the Uchiha wouldn't notice the edge to his voice.

"Why should you care?"

Naruto shrugged looking away "Just interested …"

There was a silence.

"He knew my brother…I think"

He hoped the Genin wouldn't press the topic any further…If the Uchiha remembered too much... Sure he had planned to give up the game at some point, but if the wrong people knew he was alive… It could end up very badly for a lot of people, not just for him.

"What was he like Sasuke-kun?"

"I don't really remember…he had a white mask, with-" he ran four fingers down the centre of his face "Four red stripes down the middle, and the usual Anbu uniform, I remember finding it odd that he was the same height as me"

_"Curse all Uchiha's!"_ Naruto growled.

"He was the same height?" Kensuki frowned, wincing as the expression caused a bruise on his chin to flare up in pain "So was he just short…or was he young? Like…really, _really_ young?" The Genin sat and or stood respectively, wondering silently about the identity of Kitsune, whilst Naruto sat, fuming. Not that you would have guessed from his expression.

"Yo!" Kakashi winced, as he looked into two murderous cerulean blue eyes.

_"This…is not going to end well"_

"You're LATE!" Kensuki and Sakura yelled, pointing accusing fingers at the extremely late sensei.

_"I'll be more than late when Naruto is through" _Kakashi thought.

"Hehehe." The silver haired Jounin rubbed the back of his head "I got lost…on the road of life."

The three Genin dead panned.

"Sure Sensei." Kensuki sighed "_Sure_."

The midday heat was stifling, but Team 7 had just rested under the shade of the trees.

"Do you know about Kitsune Kakashi-sensei?" Kensuki asked. Naruto suppressed a groan, what had the kid got against him?

"Well…I met him a few times" The older man admitted.

"Really, what was he like?" Sakura asked, and Naruto noticed that Sasuke also sat up a little taller.

"Well…he was certainly good at what he did-"

"But what did he look like sensei?" Kensuki interrupted "None of us know"

Naruto wanted the earth to open up and swallow him. _"What is with these kids and their obsession?"_

"I don't know either, I only saw him when he was very young," Kakashi shrugged "He is sure to have changed by now." Naruto let his breath out; completely unaware he had been holding it.

"How old would he be now then?" Sasuke asked, surprising the other members of Team 7.

"He would be…your age."

"What?!" All three members turned to Kakashi in shock "Our age?!"

The Jounin nodded.

"He was Anbu…before we even joined the Academy?" Kakashi nodded again.

"Does anyone know where he is?" Sakura asked.

"He still lives in Konoha apparently…" Kakashi shrugged "Not many people know where.

"Do you?" Sasuke said in words what the other two Genin were thinking, or on the verge of saying.

"Well…" The Jounin looked over at Naruto, who was glaring like a sharp battle ready kunai. But the Copy-Nin carried on as if nothing was wrong "Some say that he hangs around in the Forest of Death every full moon but that's just old gossip."

Naruto groaned as he realized that each of the Genin had the full intention of going to see if the rumour was true. The full moon was tomorrow. Yet the Forest of Death was dangerous to Genin, hell, even most Jounin were at risk from some of the things that inhabited that deadly forest.

Naruto waited until the Genin had gone home in order to vent his frustration.

"Why the hell'd you do that?!" Naruto yelled, his cerulean eyes no longer calm, but like a thrashing river, fists clenched. All memories of the time

"They need training, what better way?" he said off-handedly, Icha Icha book open, scanning pages.

"Look at me when I'm speaking to you!" the blonde hissed, wrenching the book from the Jounin's grasp, throwing it to the floor.

"Why should I?" the silver haired Jounin snapped, for once losing his legendary indifference, grey eye like steel "You're a nobody! By your own choice!"The two stood silently, facing each tension was almost palpable, and Kakashi had a feeling that it wouldn't be long before blows were traded.

He had absolutely no desire to test out Naruto's skills after two years of withdrawal from the Black Ops, since the blonde boy could have easily beaten him before. Sighing, he slouched.

"I'm sorry Naruto-kun."

And he was, _really_ was.

"No…It's alright…It was silly of me to overact Senpai." the blonde had his head in his hands.

Kakashi crouched and grabbed the orange bound book from its precarious position on the ground by their feet, placing it back in his kunai pouch, and then drew something out.  
Naruto's breath hitched in his throat.

_That?_

"It's only for a night, but you can be Kitsune again…" Kakashi said quietly "It's nothing official…no missions just…" But all Naruto could hear was his heart pounding as he reached out for the all too familiar Anbu mask. Four red lines ran down vertically from forehead to chin.

Kitsune...

"The Hokage gave it to me…" Kakashi explained as Naruto took the mask from his outstretched fingers "He told me he remembered a time when you said that you would never take it off."

"I said that…?" "_I suppose I did…"_

He ran his fingers down the red stripes, there were too many memories he had forced himself to forget related to the mask. The porcelain surface was still as smooth at it had ever been, looking almost as clean as when he had first seen it, but a small fracture on the bottom length of the mask convinced him it was the original. The last time he had seen this, it had been discarded at the feet of the Sandaime, and its clean white surface had been covered with drying blood.

Flipping it over, he traced the faint lettering on the inside.

_From Tora, Yama, Inu and Keii!  
Good luck in ANBU Kitsune!_

The faces flashed through his mind as his hands passed over each of the names.

Keii, Naruto doubted he would ever see his face again, Yama would never be teased by Tora again. Inu - but he was no longer Inu - Kakashi had moved on with his life. Tora was still Tora, the last of the four, her smiles still as vibrant, her teasing just as present as they ever were. Everyone had moved on. Why hadn't he? Had he been so focused on forgetting the past...he had become a part of it?

"Just once…" he whispered, his eyes shutting wearily, his hand dropping to his side. Without him, the Genin could die in that forest. He hadn't known any of them for that long, yet somehow they had just inserted themselves into his life. Twisting on his heels, he left the silver haired Jounin alone in the training ground. Kakashi turned, facing the Hokage monument…but instead of looking at the usual face, he turned to the Sandaime.

"See…I told you he would take it back." The Hokage had heard about Naruto's life since he had left the Black Ops, and had asked Kakashi help him.

He hoped that it had at least made a little difference.

* * *

All right Qs & As! This is important to me so that anything that I've not made clear in the story can be found here! Skip If you don't wanna read!

**I'm just wondering if Sarutobi is going to live in this one, is Orochimaru gonna die? And what the hells going on with Akatsuki? Finally, is... Naruto... Gonna... haveapairing!? **From Lord Ezra'eil

The answer to the first two *winks* now that would be telling! I changed my mind, no pairing…

**NaruXNeruki?** From LbcLostKid

Though I love Neruki-chan, she not quite right for Naruto...Though...that has just given me some inspiration for another story...but I'll have to finish this off first! ^_^

**What level is Naruto around now anyways? **From JNottle

Well after two years, he's forgotten _stuff_, but he can still kick ass! You don't really get much better than Hokage power do you? So even after two years, it's almost an instinct, so he'll need to retrain. ^_^ Fuel for more chapters!

**Is Naruto going to go back to anbu or something? or just help out the team? **From Arch Zell

*laughs* For the moment he's just _offering_ to help Team 7...but we all know what Naruto's like...^_^

**Can Sasuke get his ** whooped by Naruto?** From rexr

Let's just say, if I don't get around to it...I'll write a one-shot where this happens, sort of like an alternate chapter...^_^

**?** From Sakushiro!

- When Naruto preforms the genjutsu, Sasuke only _thinks_ he sees a hand seal, and who knows, maybe Naruto did it on purpose to play with Sasuke's mind? *giggles* He _does_ still have a childish streak. ^_^

-Why does Neruki/Tora glomp people? The answer? She is _insane_, plus, glomping people is fun!

Any more questions you want to ask? Something you would like to know that I haven't explained properly? Feel free to ask questions in your reviews! You can never ask too many!


	8. Omoide

He stared at it.

It stared back.

It was a never ending staring competition.

On the bed next to the ever staring mask, lay his Ninjato. It had been there when he had got back home from the training ground, placed on top of his sheets, gleaming like it had just been cleaned. He hadn't touched it yet, it had stayed where it had been set down.

"Why am I doing this…?" He thought wearily, resisting the urge to curl up and forget anything and everything that had happened that day "Why am I going back to the life I left?"

He had no answer, not yet.

Next to it laid an old issue Anbu uniform, like the type he used to wear, but significantly bigger than the last, two years was long enough to grow out of something. More than long enough. There were other things on his mind…racing through at the speed of light.

"I might not be any help…after two years…things are forgotten easily." With that thought, an uncomfortable amount of fear ran through him, causing him to clench his eyes shut and breathe out sharply. _"I won't let them die!"_

He would have to train. Just to see. Just to see if he could help them, they needed to be trained, they needed to survive the Chunin exams… He would not let them die.

The rustle of the uniform was nearly painful, as he put it on... yet soothing… almost hypnotic others might have said. The ninjato was firmly placed on his back, the hilt over his right shoulder, its weight as comforting as the sound of the uniform. He stood there for a while, staring at the unemotional, striped mask in his hands, the ties hanging limply in his grasp.

Doubts ran through his head.

Suspicions.

Second thoughts.

What if the Hokage forced him to rejoin the Black Ops? What if that day repeated itself…? His knuckles turned white as his fingers dug into the white porcelain, he knew then that he would never rejoin Anbu, it would destroy what little sanity he had managed to grab a hold of."But I won't let them die…" he whispered, placing the cool mask over his face. He let out a deep breath. In a blink he was gone, the window swung on its hinges as if seeing the boy off, waving a forlorn goodbye.

Kitsune.

It was so easy to fall back into that character…even if he was as much Kitsune as Kitsune was him. Yet Kitsune was the ever alert, stoic Anbu, Naruto was the boy who lived on his own in his own apartment.

They were different people.

The wind rushed past as he ran along the rooftops, racing the other shinobi that used the highway. He had missed this, the freedom to be whatever he wanted. Casting a glance around, he noticed there was a distinct lack of Anbu patrolling the rooftops…

Kitsune shrugged.

The rules were sure to have changed in the time he had left. Now that he was back he would have to look them up. He was currently heading west…towards the larger, unused training grounds.

Training Ground 1.

It was one of the largest, but also the furthest from Konoha, in case he practiced anything too drastic. He would have to sneak through the other training grounds to get there. The taller buildings were replaced by smaller houses, probably a civilian quarter. The wind carried an interesting scent, like a thousand flowers. He peered down into the street, suddenly curious were the otherworldly smell was coming from.

'Yamanaka Flower Shop.'

_"As in…Yamanaka Inoichi?"_

He suppressed a laugh, the last time he had seen Inoichi was when the blonde Jounin had been interrogating a man suspected of being an Iwa spy… It had taken the Yamanaka about 3 minutes to render the Iwa Nin to a jittering pile, having spilled his life story to the blonde Jounin, and revealed his purpose in Konoha.

A man like that owned a flower shop?

He stopped for a moment. Kitsune sat on the edge, his feet dangling over the rooftop.  
13 years and he had never seen this street before. There were only a few people on this street, going about their own business, but four figures caught his attention.

* * *

Shikamaru sighed.

_"Troublesome…"_

Next to him, Chouji was busy emptying the thousandth bag of chips, not even offering any to his team mates. Not that they really cared. Asuma took a drag of his perpetually present cigarette, the smell of smoke lingering around him. Ino wrinkled her nose.

"Sensei!" She wafted a hand in front of her, in a vain attempt to clear the haze of smoke "The smell stays in my hair for days!" the blonde whined. The bearded Jounin shrugged. Chouji finished the packet he had been eating and pulled out the next packet, then continued to eat.

Shikamaru sighed again. It had been a long day.

He had been told about their nomination for the Chunin exams, trained a bit, ignored Ino and stared at clouds. And now they were finished, and like they did every other day, walk Ino back to the flower shop. Something caught his eye. He looked up to the rooftops. There was a tiny flicker of movement, he was sure that the tiny flicker he had seen had been a foot. He glanced back at his team, wondering if they had seen it too… Ino was too busy complaining about…everything, and Chouji was too busy doing what he always did, eat. But Asuma was also looking at the rooftop, but what puzzled Shikamaru was the faint smile on his lips.

"What's going on…?"

Asuma looked down in surprise, and then smiled at Shikamaru's expression. "It would be too troublesome…believe me Shikamaru."

_"So there is something going on…but what?"_

The Nara sighed again, digging his hands deep into his pockets. At least Ino was home now.

_"How troublesome..."_

* * *

So that had been one of the other Genin teams?

Kitsune was already in training ground 3, having to pass through this one and training ground 2 to get where he wanted to go. Training ground 3 was an area of dense woodland; usually used by the Academy for their older students and occasionally the odd Genin team.

Some people said it was where the Shodaime trained….not that Kitsune believed any of it, but he supposed it was a nice thought; he imagined that if the Shodaime had practiced here, the Mokuton user would have liked the trees. Talking of the trees… They were much closer now than they had been when he had first entered the training ground, making hopping from tree branch to tree branch increasingly more difficult.

He just hoped he didn't slip.

Because that would just be plain embarrassing.

He was glad that the training ground was smaller than most, but the limited vision with the mask firmly in place was beginning to bug him, he couldn't remember if it had annoyed him before, or if it had just never bothered him…

At least the forest would end.

Then he remembered what training ground 2 was. And Kitsune had a horrible feeling that the Genin would run him ragged around the Forest of death tomorrow evening. Yes, he would have a nice, possibly painful conversation with his Senpai after this was all over.

And Tora-chan as well, for giving Kensuki the god damn idea.

* * *

She kept running as fast as she could, it was all she could do to stay ahead of them, but even as she ran, her mind raced through all the tactics she could to defeat them, when she finally gave up on running away, or they finally caught up with her. She sensed someone in front of her before she actually saw him, sat above the forest floor on a tree branch ahead.

Blinking, she realised that the figure sat in front of her was a Black Ops member. Hinata stopped, hoping that the Anbu hadn't noticed her yet. It was rare she ever got to see an Anbu member close up like this. She had always been fascinated by Anbu since a very young age, after she was saved by a Black Ops member after an attempted kidnap by a Kumo Nin. Her eyes traced the mane of sunshine yellow hair. And suddenly he turned. Startled cerulean blue eyes met startled lavender eyes.

And then vanished.

Hinata didn't move, even when Kiba and Shino found her.

* * *

"Dammit." Kitsune cursed "I stop twice and get then get spotted by Genin?" If he had thought falling out of a tree was embarrassing, this was infinitely times worse.

_"By Genin!?"_ he mentally yelled at himself slightly angered. He was now in the largest clearing of training ground 1, stood patiently still. The masked blonde sighed, there was nothing he could do about it now, plus, he had more important things on his mind.

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu"

The clearing was suddenly full of clones dressed up in Anbu gear, Kitsune mask on each and every one. He was remotely surprised that he could even use the technique after all this time…. He was suddenly extremely grateful to the Sandaime for teaching him the jutsu; it would cut his training time by roughly half.

"Right listen up! This is how it goes-!"

* * *

Kitsune winced as all the clones dispersed; making his brain work overtime to remember everything they had relearned. An almost full moon hung over the clearing, bathing it a soft light, making the blonde feel even more exhausted. Perhaps he had over done it…just a little. Placing his Ninjato back over his shoulder he sighed. Less than 24 hours until he would have to play nanny to three unprepared Genin, there was no way he was gonna last the night without soldier pills. He would have to pester his Senpai for some later…as soon as he managed to find the strength to get back to Konoha.

"I guess you over did it huh Kitsune?"

"You-!" He was cut off by a glomp. Kitsune flew backwards through the air, caught by surprise with the unannounced flying glomp, and then hit the floor, with an all too audible crunch. "You look so cuuute Kitsune-kun!" Tora was completely oblivious to the amount of killing intent that was rolling off the smaller masked figure, to busy squealing in delight. "Aww look at you! It's so…so…cute!"

Kitsune gritted his teeth, as it took all of his energy just to stay upright, there would be no way he could throw Tora off, he would just have to bare it until she finally got over seeing him. Which, knowing Tora….would be an unbelievable amount of time later.

"So why are you here Tora-chan?" Kitsune asked, after she had finally let him go.

"Well…"

"Were you following me?"

She laughed again. "You're the insane one using bunshins to train…" She stuck her tongue out at him and waggled her finger "Silly…"

And then he suddenly remembered…He groaned and flopped to the floor. "Why didn't I remember earlier?" He groaned "It would have saved me all this time…"

Neruki's speciality was a rare type of Nin- jutsu, similar to the Yamanaka technique, except it forced the victim to relieve their own memories, leaving them incapable to defend themselves during a battle. He could have just relieved his training memories, without all the exhaustion that came with the actual training.

"Well…" She looked around the decimated clearing, the destroyed trees, scorched and crater filled ground. Naruto looked up from his depressed huddle on the floor. She winked.

"I don't think you need my help with anything Kitsune…but if you want to take a look…"Tora left the sentence hanging, waiting for an answer from the worn out boy in front of her.

"Please?"

"Ninpou: Senkaito no jutsu"

_The Sandaime laughed for the thousandth time that day._

_"No, no Naruto-kun!" He lent down closer towards the tiny blond and repositioned his hands, much to the boys' displeasure._

_"See? If you get sloppy with your hand seals…"_

_Naruto scowled._

_"I'll show you one day Jiji." The blonde vowed._

_"Of course…" The old man yet again "But your hand slipped again."_

_Naruto scowl deepened._

"Kitsune-kun…you were so adorable!" Tora squealed.

Kitsune scowled, much like his younger, 3 year old self.

"I don't think this will get us anywhere, I can remember this stuff."

"Spoilsport" Tora pouted.

_"Right Gaki, chakra control."_

_Jiraiya sat in front of a still tiny Naruto._

"Neruki…" Kitsune growled.

"But…but…"

He sent her a death glare and she sighed.

"Fine, fine…have it your way almighty master"

_The Sandaime reached for a smallish black box, covered in black velvet, and handed it to the serious looking blonde haired boy in front of him._

_"Go on…open it."_

_Naruto carefully opened the box, peering inside, wondering about the mysterious contents._

_He reached in and pulled out a stark white Anbu mask, four red stripes running from forehead to chin._

_"Well done Naruto-kun!" The Hokage laughed "You're now a part of Anbu!"_

_Naruto looked up suddenly, his previous sombre demeanour all but vanished, huge grin covering his face._

_"Thanks Jiji! I'll never take it off!"_

_An Anbu with a dog mask appeared at the Hokage's side._

_"This is Inu." The Hokage motioned "He will be your mentor for the next year."_

_Inu removed his porcelain mask and smiled kindly at the blonde, who smiled nervously back._

_"I'm Inu." He held out a hand, feeling a little stupid introducing himself again, after the Hokage had already introduced him…but he didn't know how to act around children. Whatever he had done though had been the right thing to do. The small blonde grabbed the older teens' hand, and smile grew._

_"Kitsune…the next Hokage."_

Tora turned to the blonde, who was still sat in the dirt next to her, concerned.

"It's alright" He smiled, nothing like the childish grin he had worn in times past, but a weary, grief ridden smile, a washout.

"Perhaps send it forward a couple of years…"#

_"__Our mission is this" Keii started, carefully making sure each member of his team heard the mission brief, in an S class mission it was vital "We need to retrieve a scroll stolen from Konoha a few hours ago, we know that it is travelling south east in a trading caravan heading for the borders of Kaze no Kuni."_

_Kitsune nodded, he had been on many mission by now, very little of the care free child from 3 years ago was left._

_Keii continued._

_"We are to retrieve the scroll, do not hesitate to kill any that get in the way of your mission."_

_"Hai!"_

_Two members of the group stood, but the third remained crouched next to Keii._

_"Does that mean we try to avoid contact at all costs Senpai?"_

_Neither spoke; there was only silence, broken by birdsong every so often._

_It was known between them that neither liked mindless violence, they did what they were told and that was it._

_One stood up and began to walk towards the other two._

_"Kitsune?" The still crouching boy stood up and walked over to the blonde, then handed him something._

_A small tightly bound scroll._

_"It's a few Katon techniques I thought you might like…" Keii shrugged "You don't have to learn them if you don't want…"_

_"Arigatou Senpai"_

_Kitsune scanned the scroll before putting it into the pocket of his uniform._

"Anything useful?" Tora asked, beginning to think it might have been a bad idea; she didn't want to drag it out any longer.

Kitsune nodded. He had forgotten about that scroll.

"A little bit…but…" He shrugged his shoulders a little "I need to rest."

Tora nodded, she had known the boy had pushed himself further than he should have. "Come on." She held out a hand to pull the boy of the ground "I'll take you home." A few seconds later, the near destroyed clearing was empty.


	9. Shi No Mori: Forest of Death

This was it then… Kitsune watched the three Genin disappear over the poorly guarded fence and into the forest. He wondered how the Chunin, who were _supposed_ to be watching for intruders, missed them. _"Not my problem..." _he sighed, then pulled his mask down onto his face, before following after them. Nothing would happen to them, not while he was there.

* * *

Sakura clutched at her skirt, hoping that the two boys in front of her didn't notice how she lagged behind slightly, those two were always leaving her behind… A twig snapped. _What was that?!_She spun to her right, her heart pounding rapidly.

"Is something wrong Sakura-chan?" Kensuki had stopped and turned back towards her, Sasuke had kept on walking.

"N-nothing…I thought I heard something over there…" She gestured feebly to her right, her hand shaking. He turned to where the pinkette had pointed, and when he was sure there was nothing there, turned back to her.

"Whatever it was it's gone now." He smiled "And we better catch up to Sasuke… He might just find Kitsune without us…"

She bit her lip, and then followed after her team-mates.

"_Where are those two?"_

Both Kensuki and Sakura had stopped further back, and the fact that they hadn't reappeared had begun to annoy the Uchiha, why did he have to be on a team like _this_? How would he ever gain enough power to kill his brother if his team might as well have stayed in the Academy? Sasuke sighed as he heard the noisy footfalls of his two team mates approaching, at this rate, they would never find Kitsune, _if_ Kakashi had even been telling the truth.

The thing about the 'Once every full moon'? How much more cliché could you get…? His sensei was up to something…. If only he knew _what_…

"Hey Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled "Wait up!"

The Uchiha sighed.

"_I _had_ to get stuck on a team like this…"_

Kitsune hopped onto the next branch, keeping a watchful eye on the three; so far there had been nothing out of the usual, not anything to be worried about anyway. The forest hadn't changed much from the last time he was here, the same old boring trees, plants and dirt, looking at it now, 'The Forest of Death' didn't seem a very suitable name.

He wondered why the Genin even wanted to find him…What did they want from him. The masked blond shook his head slightly, clearing his thoughts.

"_I really am out of practice, however much I try to ignore the fact."_

One night of training and a few memories wouldn't be enough to bring back everything he had forgotten. He would have to retrain. He would have to go _there_ and pick up his old kit. He hadn't been _there_ since…

A noise.

He glanced left to right, but he felt no other presence other than the three Genin on the forest floor below him, but even if he was out of practice. The blond kept his mind trained to the task at hand.

* * *

"You know you really should lighten up a bit." The dark haired man glared at the young red head, itching to strangle the other man, or at least shut him up for once.

"It's patrol duty, not a frickin picnic Shinku." He retorted, hoping the young man would finally shut up.

The red head, Shinku, pouted. "But-!" he began to whine.

"Shuddup! Shuddup!"

Shinku shrank back, eyes suddenly fearful, and his mouth, for _once_, clamped shut. The dark haired man stood, grabbing his katana from where it rested against the post. "Stay here." He hissed furiously "I'm going to patrol the area."

He stalked off into the inky black forest.

* * *

Kitsune could feel the effect of the pills begin to wear off, and shrugged his shoulders to keep off the ache, he hoped Team 7 would give up soon…but he had his doubts. He guessed that Kensuki wanted to find Kitsune because he knew his Aunt, Sasuke probably wanted to find Kitsune because he knew Itachi, and Sakura wanted to find Kitsune because everybody else wanted to.

If he ever got around to helping Team 7, he knew _exactly_ what he would help them with.

Another sigh.

A penny for every time he sighed and he would be rich, not that he didn't have enough money. He had an account, and it held a lot more than one might expect when you looked at his tiny, rather shabby looking house. Since that _day_ he had never touched it, since all the money there had been earned on missions, it was dirty money. It was money covered in blood. Jiraiya had argued long and hard with the boy to use the money, but in the end he had given up. He had said that even his father had never been as stubborn. So Jiraiya let him earn money via his job at the bookst-

Muffled footsteps.

_The Genin?_

No, they were to his right now, and the noise had come from his left. He dropped off the branch and landed without a sound on the forest floor. Only shinobi came into the Forest of Death, why would they have the need to suppress their chakra so low that he didn't notice it while he was distracted?

"_Or perhaps your skills have dulled…"_ Not likely, he hadn't forgotten _simple_ stuff like that.

Whoever it was, they were suppressing their chakra levels incredibly low. He crept silently towards the faint sound of footsteps, they were slowly moving away from him… Towards the Genin! Kitsune cursed. He had thought that it would have been a relatively easy job…but… Cursing once more, he picked up the pace, following the direction of the strangers footsteps. Chances could be it was just an Anbu or Jounin on patrol…but he couldn't take that chance.

* * *

"Kensuki."

The boy stopped just behind Sasuke, a quizzical look on his face, Sakura stood close behind, her jade eyes full of fear, the Forest of Death was no walk in the park. Had the Uchiha seen something? Kensuki nodded, eyes shifting left and right, glancing into the shadows that surrounded them. They would find Kitsune, there was no going back now.

A figure, silhouetted in the silvery shadows of the full moon, and a brief moment of déjà vu hit Kitsune, he was sure he had seen this moment before, but he shook the thought clear. One thing was clear, the figure in front of him was not a Konoha shinobi, his Hitai-ate had a musical symbol, shuriken poised for throwing.

Aimed at the Genin.

"Get down!" Sasuke yelled, forcing both Kensuki and Sakura sprawling to the ground as they heard the sound of throwing stars flying past overhead. Sakura whimpered. The Uchiha leapt up, running straight for the direction from which the shuriken had been thrown, a kunai already in hand. Kensuki called him back, it was too reckless, but Sasuke didn't want to hear it, he didn't need _their _help. The Uchiha's kunai flew off into the bushes recklessly, followed by a Katon jutsu.

"Dammit Uchiha!" A voice growled from the darkness and Sasuke faltered. A body flew out of the shadows, flying towards the paralyzed Genin, Kensuki, strangely, was the first to react.

"Move!" All three ducked as the body flew over their heads, colliding with a huge, overgrown tree behind them, before collapsing awkwardly to the ground. Wincing Kitsune got to his feet, dodging shuriken that embedded themselves in the bark where his heart had been mere seconds before.

The Oto-nin stepped into the light, grinning ferally at the three Genin, before his attention turned back to Kitsune, who was stood completely still, the blank eye sockets staring.

"You think I would think you're Anbu just because you're dressed up like one?" The Oto-nin barked, eyes shining maliciously in the silky moonlight, his hands devoid of any weapons, but there was a katana at his waist, and no doubt had other weapons hidden in the folds of his clothes. The Genin turned, suddenly aware that they were in a very, _very_ dangerous situation, and somehow in the middle of all the danger, had managed to stumble across Kitsune.

"Silly little boy." The dark haired man shook his head; black eyes narrowed "You're about eleven? Twelve?" Kitsune bristled, making the Oto-nin bark with laughter once again "Well, don't think I'm just gonna let you get away with it…I'm gonna kill you and your little frie-."

He was cut off by a chuckle, the Oto-nin was surprised to see it came from the masked boy.

"It's true you caught me off guard before." Kitsune started, reaching to the hilt of the ninjato, fingers closing around the Tsuka "It won't happen again."

Why did the masked boy seem so sure of his success? He was a Genin at most…

"_At least he's underestimating me…" _Kitsune thought, drawing the ninjato rapidly, before letting the blade rest at his side.

"Your death will be painful, I won't lie to you and say it won't." Kitsune slid a foot slightly to one side, finding his centre of gravity "You cause me to break a promise to myself."

Sasuke stepped forwards, kunai in hand, Sharingan glowing red as he stared hatefully at the Oto-nin.

"This isn't your fight Uchiha." Kitsune growled, cursing all Uchihas stubbornness.

"Hn."

"Kensuki, get everybody out of the way." The blond Genin looked terrified, his green eyes wide in fear, but he nodded, grabbing both Sakura and Sasuke before disappearing into the tree line.

"When I'm finished with you, I'll go after them, they won't get far…I'll pick them off one by one…after I'm done, nobody will ever be able to recognize their bloodied corps-." The Oto-nin made a mistake, he threatened those Kitsune had vowed to protect.

"Shut up."

Kitsune covered the distance in a blink of an eye, and the only thing that saved the Otogakure shinobi was years of engrained reflexes, his katana blocking what would have been a fatal hit. He pushed the blade upwards, forcing the Anbu away from him, his mind flicked through the dozens of tactics that he had learnt over the years, but he had yet to see what the boy could do.

Yet the Oto Nin should have never looked away.

"Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu!"

Kitsune still had his hands locked in the bird seal when the water surged upwards, gathering in the shape of a huge dragon that coiled around his body, before the creature let out an ear splitting roar, the water swirling and hissing violently.

How had the boy even had the time to finish the jutsu? That particular jutsu had many hand seals, how had a _Genin_ managed to complete them all in such a short time?

"Katon: Ryūka no jutsu!"

Flames flew to counter the colossal water dragon, leaving the dark clearing full of steam, moisture sticking to his skin, like another layer of clothing. Something sharp dug into his neck, and blood trickled down the hollow of his throat, gathering in the material of his fishnet shirt.

"You forced me to do this." The Anbu kid whispered harshly into his ear, no compassion or childishness present in his tone, it was as emotional as stone. The blade was removed for a moment, and the Oto Nin thought for a moment that his life had been spared.

"Uzumaki Naruto was your killer." The boy whispered venomously "Remember this in the afterlife."

The blade descended gracefully, meeting little resistance, red life liquid spurting in all directions, dampening the fabric of his shirt, sticking to the white porcelain mask. He had broken the last promise, to not kill another living thing. Kitsune bowed his head.

"_And I hope…you never forgive me."_

The steam cleared, leaving the still corpse in plain sight, blood already pooling beneath the motionless figure, the once grey shirt now entirely red, dark eyes staring vacantly at the full moon. He bent down, placing a finger on each of his fallen enemy's eyelids; he dragged them down, closing the empty orbs for the last time.

"You can come out now." He motioned to the Genin "It's safe."

The masked figure stood and turned towards Team 7, moonlight reflecting off the bone white mask, marred slightly by the dripping liquid that covered the lower left half, but four red lines could be clearly seen running from forehead to chin, red spiked hair was visible behind the mask. The ninjato was slid back into its sheath with a tiny click noise, bringing the three Genin back to their senses, cautiously they stepped forwards.

"A-are you K-kitsune?" Sakura asked, finally finding the courage to speak, even though she stuttered as badly as Hinata did, she considered it an achievement since neither of the two boys had moved to speak first.

There was a sigh.

"I suppose I am."

It had been half an hour since he had saved them from the Oto-nin, and so far all they had done was ask questions, even the Uchiha had put his two cents worth into the conversation.

This quite frankly, was worrying.

"Where do you live?" "Why did you leave?" "What happened?" "What's your name?"

He was glad they hadn't recognized him, the hastily placed Henge made sure they didn't, but the noise they were making was giving him a headache, and he was still on the lookout for any enemy Nin approaching, but it seemed not even the animals, that usually inhabited the forest, were present. He would have to tell his Senpai, or even the Sandaime if it things got worse, Kitsune hadn't talked to the Third since that day, since he told the old man that he quit.

Almost every rule he had forced to himself to follow had been broken now, shattered.

He had told himself never to use Jutsus again, under any circumstances, to never commit an act of violence, to not kill, to find a peaceable solution to every conflict, to never carry a weapon, to never associate himself with the ninja of Konoha… He had used Jutsus, he had killed the Oto-nin without even speaking to the man, with a weapon he had been carrying, to protect the Genin of Team 7.

Kitsune sighed.

"Fight me." The Uchiha demanded, standing to his feet.

Kensuki frowned, wide eyes flicking between the masked figure and his team mate, fists clenched, he was worried and nervous yet didn't bother to hide it, he knew the outcome would not be in the Uchiha's favour. Sakura bit her lip, focusing her entire attention on the raven haired boy, also worried.

"_I always have _wanted_ to knock some sense of humility into him…" _Kitsune thought.

An unseen grin passed over Kitsune face, the poor Uchiha oblivious to his fate… Kensuki's frown darkened, his fists clenched so tight that the skin turned white, his green eyes as unforgiving as stone, but his glare was not directed at the ex-Anbu, but at the smirking Uchiha.

"When you're hurt Sasuke, there's no sympathy from me." Toras' nephew scowled.

"Kensuki!" The pinkette flared, her fist missed him by centimetres "don't say that about Sasuke-kun! He can beat Kitsune any day!"

"Fine Uchiha, lets see if that Sharingan of yours can keep up."

He was glad that Tora had been following him the night before; the scroll had helped more than he had expected it to do, there were a few Jutsus he had never _even_ remembered learning… He rolled his shoulders a little, ignoring the stiff muscles protesting; even _thinking_ about moving tomorrow made him groan in pain, but the Uchiha mistook it.

"Don't think I'll go easy on you." The raven smirked, his eyes glowing red as he activated the Sharingan, the two tomoe visible even in the liquid moon light as he slid back into the typical Uchiha Taijutsu stance.

Unfortunately for the young Uchiha, Kitsune knew the stance like the back of his hand, Keii wasn't his Senpai for _nothing_, and after seeing the fight between Kensuki and Sasuke, he also knew exactly where the Uchiha's weak, less guarded points were… The Uchiha didn't pause a second, instead rushing forward with chakra enhanced speed; hands already part way through the seals for the Housenka no jutsu.

"_An A-rank? Again?" _Kitsune sighed mentally _"This bright spark needs a good hit to the head…"_

Before Sasuke could finish his hand seal, he had to dodge Kitsunes'…

"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu"

The water surged upwards, pausing for a moment before heading towards the Uchiha's jutsu, quenching the flames, leaving the Uchiha in a sodden heap, unable to even get to his feet, after the water had crashed down full force on top of him.

"I think you've had enough Uchiha." And with that, Kitsune turned and began to walk away, the boy had tried and failed, second round was out of the question.

"Don't turn your back on me!" he heard the Uchiha yell. He made a mental note to tell Kakashi to step up his training with the Sharingan, Kitsune stopped, glancing down at the prone boy.

"Sasuke-kun!" Having been silent 'till now, Sakura rushed from her hiding place, before crouching protectively over Sasuke. "How could you! Monster! You hurt Sasuke-kun!"

Kitsune flinched, old memories fluttering before fading away once more, he bowed his head, perhaps he _had_ gone too far. Sakura backed away, unsure of what the ex-shinobi would do, she had been told stories by her father about how almost everyone who joined the Black Ops never came back the same as when they had entered, this man…boy…could kill her and no-one be would any wiser.

"He _did_ ask for it Sakura-chan" the Kensuki pointed out, much to the pinkettes' distaste. Kitsune took a tentative step towards his fallen opponent, noting how Sakura tensed and reached for her kunai pouch. He held out his hand, and in it rested a small, round pill, the moonlight not to blame for its strange glow.

"Take it… it will help him recover at least"

She hesitated, unsure of what to do, but a glance at the Uchiha, who still hadn't managed to get up from the floor, she reached for the pill.

Kensuki had expected the ex-Anbu to take off, but instead, he sat down in a rather ungracious manner, before laying back, stretching his limbs out on the dirt, much like Kensuki had done after his fight with the Uchiha. The mask slipped a little, and Tora's nephew jumped, Kitsune didn't even seem to notice the boys' curious stare as he nudged the mask back into place.

But now Kensuki was even more curious.

Kitsunes' eyelids drooped momentarily, he knew he was dangerously near his limits of energy; he _probably_ had enough to get back to Konoha, since the last soldier pill had been given to the Uchiha, since the boy had been stubborn enough to stand in the way of the Suiton Jutsu. He had given the Uchiha the chance to dodge the attack, but _no_…his pride had forced him to take the brunt of over two tons of unforgiving water.

"_Stupid Uchiha pride."_

Kitsune glanced around, wary for anymore attacks.

The Oto-nin had no _reason_ to be in the Shi no Mori, and that's what worried him most, there was no reason to attack the Genin either… It wasn't like they were even trespassing on Otogakures' soil so… He would have to tell the Hokage about this.

When the Genin were ready, he led them to the nearest exit, a point furthest away from any Chunin who could report them, and watched as the three figures disappeared into the night.

"Shunshin no Jutsu."

He disappeared in a silent tornado of leaves.

* * *

Dun Duuun DUN!

Aghh Why are there whole _spaces _between lines? *tears hair out*


	10. In Between

Writers Block sucks in every way imaginable, you can tell by the way this chapter is about two thirds the size of a normal chappie...

0

Chapter 10

0

"_An Oto-nin, you're sure?"_

_Naruto nodded wearily, head held in his hands. Kakashi sighed, leaning back in the kitchen chair, obviously worried._

"_I'll tell Sandaime…Unless you want to go…?" The silver haired man trailed off, suggesting that the boy should go and speak to the Hokage, but not saying it out loud._

_But both heard those unspoken words, both understanding._

"_I suppose I could…He has a few of my things I need to get back…"_

_Kakashi fought the urge to smile, it seemed finally after all this time, they had managed to get through to him._ _Naruto yawned, stretching his tired arms above his head, lowering them slowly before letting them drop back to his sides._

"_Will you be able to get back home in that condition?" the Jounin asked, concerned by how fatigued the blond appeared to be…_

"_I might…" Naruto shrugged, uncaring "I'm not sure."_

_Kakashi chuckled, before standing from the chair he had been sat in and walking over to the spare bedroom door, nudging it open._

"_It's all yours…nobody else uses it anyway."_

Why did Senpai not own _ramen_?!

Naruto had searched _every_ cupboard, but hadn't been able to find anything even _remotely _like ramen, just a stack of _boring_ canned food. Every single cupboard was _filled_ with the things, and Naruto was quickly loosing what remained of his self control.

Feeling like he _deserved_ an emotional breakdown after the night before, he left the house and wondered over to Ichiraku's, deciding that he could put the meal on his Senpai's tab, since the man deserved it for not having _any_ ramen in the house.

* * *

"I need to speak to the Hokage."

The secretary peered over the bridge of his glass, giving the boy a once over before his eyes dropped back to the paperwork he had been filling in before the civilian brat had interrupted him.

"I'm sorry; he's busy preparing for the Chunin Exams."

"I need to see him."

The damned brat hadn't moved an inch.

"I said, he's busy."

For a moment, the secretary thought that the boy would leave, but instead the blond leant forwards, a blank look on his face.

"Code in, SD435, Mission Complete."

The secretary sneered, but he typed in the code regardless, the boy had made the mistake to use an Anbu code, who would have believed the boy was Anbu?

MISSION: INCOMPLETE

The words glared red, and a quick glance at the date the mission was set told him it was an old mission, perhaps two or three years old. When he looked up, the boy had gone. He stood from his seat, eyes scanning the entrance for any sign of the strange boy, before his attention turned to the squad of Anbu.

"You didn't see a boy run towards the Hokages' office did you?" He asked worriedly, the boy could have been a _spy_! The Anbu shook their heads, and with that the secretary sat back down on his chair dejectedly, if the Anbu hadn't seen him, he must have given up and left. The man smirked; the boy had obviously run away after he had figured out that the code he had given in was a Black Ops mission code.

"What's up Taichou ?" One of the Anbu asked, Uma his codename was.

"Hmm…when that boy came in you got all…weird" Tori added, her arms crossed, a frown obviously on her face, though hidden because of the mask.

"Hehehe…" the captain of the team giggled.

"Taichou…" The third member of the squad, Nezumi, added "You are possibly the most insane person I have ever met…"

"Hahaha…" Tora collapsed in a fit of laughter, her mind briefly wondering _why_ Naruto, after all this time, had finally decided to come and visit the Sandaime.

The three Anbu sweatdropped, why did _their_ captain have to be so damn _insane?_

Naruto took a deep breath, chiding himself for ending so caught up in his Senpai's plans, but he knew he had already given up and decided to go along with it.

"_I think that part of me forced myself to go along with it…Wait…I sound as insane as Tora …"_ He shook his head, then gently pushed open the door.

"It's been a while, Naruto-kun."

"You did what?" The Hokage chuckled "I can't believe Sasuke-kun actually challenged you to a fight." He shook his head from side to side.

"Yeah…well, let's just hope he won't do it any time soon…" Naruto smiled, before his face turned serious once more "There's no problem with Otogakure is there? No reason for them to attack Konoha?"

The old man sighed, suddenly looking far older and more fragile than he had a few seconds before, tired eyes drooping closed for a second.

"Unfortunately, it's classified information." He sighed, rubbing his temples.

Naruto grimaced, a look of pain crossing his face in a flash before disappearing, the last he had heard of Otogakure, it had been a fairly peaceful village…as far as he knew; there was no conflict between them and Konoha. "That reminds me Hokage-sama, do you still have my equipment in the stores?"

The Sandaimes' eyebrows furrowed, obviously confused. "But you said…" _You said you never wanted to see those things again._

Naruto interrupted him. "I've said a lot of things."

"_And broken many promises too…"_

The Professor opened the drawer, which contained a dark silver key, rust setting in at the base, retrieving the sliver of metal; he laid it on his desk.

"Thank you Hokage-sama."

The boy began to stand, but was stopped.

"Wait a second Naruto-kun…there's something else." Another key was handed over. The blue eyes boy cast a glance towards the smiling Hokage, who made a shooing movement with his hand. "A present."

Naruto knew better than to ask, so he left silently. The Hokage chuckled, before lighting his pipe and getting back to the never ending paperwork.

* * *

Surprisingly, the door opened easily, Naruto had half expected the door to be rusted shut, or at least a little hard to open, but the door opened with barely a noise.

The three walls of the storage cell were covered with many different kinds of weapons, from kunai and shuriken, to bows and swords. But most of them he never used anyway. There would be only so much he could carry. There was only one thing he came for, and he knew, even after all this time, exactly where he had last put it. Flipping open the lid of one of the wooden chests, he carefully pulled out the weapon before strapping it to his back. Without staying any longer than he needed to he left the storage cell.

He placed his key back in his pocket, knowing that he would probably return for some other things later, but the weapon on his back was the only thing that he needed right now.

Cold brushed at his fingertips, startling him for a moment, before remembering the other key the Hokage had given him; it looked pretty much like any other key he had owned, perhaps more a little more tarnished and rusty than most, but nothing special, two numbers engraved at the very bottom.

21

Meaning Vault 21; the vault at the end of the next corridor.

Slinging the key back into his pocket, he began to walk down the corridor, trying to remember which of the doors led onto the next hallway over, failing miserably in the process.

His mind wondered, drifting back to the night before.

Each of the Genin had really shown their colours, Kensuki had been very defensive, keeping an eye out for his team mates, Sasuke had been the opposite, leaving his other two team mates to fend for themselves while he went off on his own, and Sakura hadn't actually done _anything_…but nobody seemed to take her seriously enough to take the time to teach her anything worthwhile. Yet she had seen when a move that had left Sasuke's side unguarded for a second, which had really confused him, throwing his whole opinion of her out of the window and all he could do was watch it hit the pavement.

He sighed, the door he was looking for, Vault 21, was visible now, at the very end of the corridor. "_Almost there at least…"_ Retrieving the key cautiously from his pocket, he turned it over a couple of times, only wondering _now_ what could be on the other side of the door.

"_Better now than never…"_

This door gave him more trouble than he expected, having rusted shut, it must have been a while since the door had last been opened, but a well place kicked and it opened far enough to let him squeeze in. The room was almost empty, all the surfaces covered in a thick layer of dust, his footfalls disturbing the stillness of the room. The only contents of the room: a small case. Flipping the catches open, he threw the lid open.

And he stared.

Not moving for several seconds.

Not sure whether he should be grateful or annoyed.

The case was lined with three pronged kunai, each hilt covered with a paper seal.

The Flying Thunder God Technique.

Hiraishin no Jutsu.

The only technique he had been prohibited from learning.

* * *

"You're late." Kakashi said monotonously, his eye never once glancing from the pages of Icha Icha, broken every so often when he moved to flick over the next page.

"We…_are_..?"

The three Genin looked a little tired, and Kakashi noticed Sasuke was favouring his left leg ever so slightly, but just enough to notice it when he walked. What _had_ Naruto done to them?

"Have fun last night?" the Jounin asked, his voice monotonous once more, but a small smile was on his lips.

"Well…Kitsune was…_interesting_." Sakura said hesitantly, when neither of the two boys answered for her.

"_Interesting eh?" _Kakashi laughed…only in his head though. _"It seems Kitsune has gotten a little melodramatic in his old age…"_

"And what happened to Sasuke-kun?" He asked, thoroughly enjoying the torture he was inflicting upon his students. What can I say? Naruto had to get his attitude from somewhere…

"I…" Sasuke directed a famous Uchiha Scowl at the silver haired Sensei, to which said Sensei smiled, his eyes crinkling upwards. "Lost." Sasuke finished, his scowl deepening further still.

"He was going to be the next Hokage." Kakashi shut the book with a snap, causing Kensuki and Sakura to jump "I would have hardly expected you to win."

"_But_..."

Kakashi cut the Uchiha off with a wave of his hand. "Maa, no buts about it." The Uchiha dropped his gaze back to the floor.

"And what about you two?" the silver haired interrogator asked, gaze flicking between the two other members of his team. Kensuki frowned.

"Was he always like that sensei?"

"Hmm, like what?"

"So…" The blond trailed off, not finding any way to express what he was feeling. Kakashi suddenly looked serious, surprising the three children, and turned away from them, facing back towards the centre of Konoha.

"I suppose you're all well enough to train, but we can do that later, it's midday already…perhaps we can go find Naruto for lunch?…I'm sure he'd love to hear about Kitsune."

"What?! It's _lunch_ time?" the three Genin yelled in almost practised unison. Sakura smiled. "I guess we were all pretty out of it, huh?"

They hurried after their rapidly retreating Sensei.

* * *

_Slide-step-turn-block-strike-turn-strike-drop-strike-turn-back_

Naruto wiped the sweat from his forehead, the sun burning his exposed back as he stood in the middle of a vacant training ground, his katana held loosely in his hand. He might be completely exhausted, but there was still a smile on his face and a sense of achievement. It was then that his stomach rumbled, and he decided that Ichiraku's was nice enough to eat for both breakfast _and _lunch. Strapping the blade to his back, he began to walk towards Konoha, taking his own sweet time.

"Look!" Kensuki pointed, the frown replaced by his sunny smile "It's Shika and Kiba's teams!"

Almost all the seats were filled, and Team 7 had to squeeze in on the last four seats at the counter to place their orders. Let's just say the Uchiha was _not_ impressed being crushed either side by both Kensuki _and_ Kiba.

"So Shika!" Kensuki yelled, once again arms wind milling wildly "Watcha been up to?"

"Watching clouds."

"Aaannd?"

"No…that's about it."

Kensuki frowned. "But you have to have done something…"

"Nope…" the lazy slacker grinned "Too troublesome.."

"Right…" The frown suddenly disappearing as quickly as it had appeared.

"Chouji?"

"Me..?" The Akimichi shovelled more food into his mouth "Not much…"

"Ino?" Kensuki didn't really like the blonde haired Yamanaka…but he didn't want her to feel left out.

"Me? Working at the shop…" She tossed her platinum blonde hair over her shoulder "But nothing exciting really."

Kensuki smiled, it had probably been the first time that the girl hadn't shouted at him or told him to go away when he asked her a question, and he turned to Team 8. Teuchi smiled at the young genin sat at the counter, recognizing Team 7 as Naruto's friends from before. Talking of the blonde, he wasn't there…

"Teuchi-san." Kakashi waved a greeting, eyes creasing in a smile nobody could see

"Kakashi-san." The ramen stall owner nodded back to the silver haired Jounin.

"Has Naruto-kun been here yet?"

"He was here this morning and he seemed pretty annoyed, kept muttering about 'how Senpai would pay for the lack of ramen'."

Kakashi gulped.

"_Naruto wouldn't get so worked up over ramen would he?...Would he..?"_ Kakashi resigned himself to his imminent demise. "Did he say where he was going?"

"He said something about going to see Hokage-sama." The stall owner shrugged "But he didn't say much about it…"

The Jounin sighed; perhaps they _wouldn't _be joining Naruto for lunch…

* * *

"_Finally!" _

Naruto grinned, it had taken what felt like _forever_ to get from the training ground all the way to Ichiraku's, and at last, he had finally arrived. He winced as his stomach rumbled painfully, reminding him of how hungry he actually was.

"_Ichiraku's here I come!"_

* * *

**Q & A's ***insert them tune here*

Chappie 8 Questions...

**Why is it bad to train with Kage Bunshins?** From Arch Zell

It's not bad, but Tora's laughing at him for using them, because he could have remembered and relearnt everything via his old memories, rather than waste time and chakra on bunshins... Does that explain everything? Gomen if it's confusing.

**Has it not occurred to you to use something besides"Kitsune" as a code name?...This is ciche to the hundredth degree **From BloodySeraphim

I could call him Frank or Killer Bunny of the Apocalypse...It just doesn't have the same ring to it...I used Kitsune _because _it's cliche, and everybody knows who I'm on about...at least *shifty eyes* I hope you do...

**You really should have picked some other reason for Naruto to quit. Intelligence is NEVER 100% accurate in anything.** By Aerowind Kinomoto

Bwahaha...this shall be explained in later chappies...Do the words 'Twist' and 'Plot' mean anything to ya? Hehehehe

**I think your overestimating how long 2 years is. **From Lord Ezra'eil

Well, he forces himself to forget things... it can actually happen to people, like frced amnesia...but I suppose I did kinda exagerate...but it gives me chapter fuel...!

*This is kinda where it starts on Chapter 9*

**He didn't go to Shi no Mori that night? **From BSUBK (hehe your name's too long ^_^)

It was the night after, since when 'Kashi tells them about it, it's two days before the full moon, so he trains that evening untill the early morning, sleeps, gets everything together and then goes and babysits the Genin. Gomen if I didn't make it clear enough, sometimes I forget people can't read my mind...

**Sakura's kinda annoying... **From Yokura

Yup she is...That was on purpose though... I don't actually hate her, so it's just her being in character...

**Why was that oto guy there?** From Arch Zell

What happens during the Chunin Exams...? ;P

**I wonder if some sense was knocked into Sasuke?** From piratepenguin

It's _Sasuke_, you would need to run him over with a space shuttle to knock _anything_ into him...good thing Kitsune owns a space shuttle eh?

I think that's all the questions, and things that needed answering, if you're wondering why I don't answer everyobdy directly it's because I know some people don't ask the questions or they're too embarrassed to ask, so I write them here so if there's something someone doesn't understand it might be answered here...

Anything you don't understand, please feel free to ask!

*Tora pops out of nowhere again*

_You're my Honeybunch, SugarplumPumpy-umpy-umpkin, You're my Sweetie Pie, You're my Cuppycake, GumdropSnoogums-Boogums. You're the Apple of my Eye. And I love you so and I want you to know. That I'll always be right here. And I love to sing sweet songs to you. Because you are so dear! _


	11. If I win

Hey y'all! ^_^ I _finally_ managed to get the chapter out! Dedicated to Lord Ezra'eil, Spaz-tastic Panda and Broken Flavors! You gave me the inspiration for this chapter and the ability to kill the writers block monster! Unfortunatley, this chapter is a little shorter than the rest ): Hope you enjoy! **I attempted to reformat the chapter, should be a little easier to read now...gimme a shout if it isn't!**

* * *

Kakashi Hatake swallowed eyes wide and staring, his entire body rigid… He didn't move an inch, just kept staring forwards as if his life depended on it, completely still.  
And, unbeknown to all the other patrons to Ichiraku's who all stared curiously at the statue that was once a Jounin, puzzled at his strange behavior, his life really _did_ depend on it.  
Sasuke frowned, glancing momentarily at his sensei and then back to the bowl in front of him, continuing to eat as if absolutely nothing was wrong, not even bothered about whatever was troubling the silver haired man. Both Kensuki and Sakura exchanged puzzled looks. Sure their sensei was kinda weird…but when had he ever gotten _this_ weird?

Yet slowly, the other teams began to feel the air beginning to fill with a menacing killer intent, sending shivers even down the _Jounin's_ spines. Where was the source of this amazing amount of KI? Kakashi turned slowly on his seat, every fiber of his being telling him to get up and run as far away as he could, as fast as he could, except instead of seeing what he had expected to see (A zombie, or some kind of insane Kage..) he came face to face with a wide, iridescent, sparkling smile.

Naruto's smile looked eerily like Gai's.

"Hehehe…What a surprise seeing you Kakashi-san." It was precisely _then_ that the Copy nin _knew_ he was a dead man.

"And getting ramen no less…" The blinding smile still in place, but there was nothing happy about it; it was more of a grimace. Naruto gave a hollow laugh, but somehow managed not to change his facial expression.

"You do realize.." The blonds' smile inched a little wider. "That there's no ramen in any of your cupboards…?"

The evil look in those blue eyes promised an _eternity_ at the bottom of a pit full of an assortment of poisonous insects, if _some_ sort of apology was not offered _quickly_.  
Being the genius Kakashi was (plus his self preservation instincts and lack of desire to be at the bottom of said pit) he came up with the response:

"Ramen... On me?"

Kurenai turned to Asuma, whispering behind her hand. "And _he's_ supposed to be the child _prodigy_?"

The bearded Jounin chuckled, but his eyes remained focused on the blond figure, rather than turning to see his friends' reaction. Then as quickly as it had appeared, the killer intent disappeared, yet still leaving the vague air of a threat that if the silver haired man did not supply the blond with enough ramen to satisfy him…there would be _consequences_.

6 bowls.  
6 large bowls.  
Kakashi was now officially broke.  
_Again_.

"Kakashi-san?"

The silver haired shinobi was forcefully extracted from his melancholic day dreaming about his lack of monetary funds by the ramen stall owner, holding a sheet of bone white paper.

"Your tab."

Silence.

"My…tab?"

Teuchi gave him a look that clearly said:  
_No it's last years' Christmas list and I thought you should have it.  
_  
"Yes, _your_ tab." He handed over the list "It needs paying."

Kakashi scanned down slowly, carefully reading the paper the ramen stall owner had given him, his one visible eye narrowing as he got further down the list, glinting evilly.

"Would you believe me…?" Kakashi shot a look at the blond two seats down, happily tucking into a seventh bowl. "If I said that someone has been abusing my tab?"

Teuchi's face didn't move an inch; it was like an unyielding rock face. Kakashi was glad that the man had never decided to enroll in the Ninja Academy; he would have been Ibiki's best friend.

"It's on your tab." The older man gestured "You have to pay for it."

"W-wait! What?!" Kakashi spluttered, causing the Genin to look up at the flustered Sensei, before they looked away again, now regarding the behavior as normal. He had just spent the last of his money on… Naruto turned, and after a brief second, winked, a small, almost unnoticeable movement, then quickly followed by an obscure hand signal, which Tora had created.

_"Sucker!"  
_  
Kakashi didn't know whether to laugh, cry, attack the blond or do all of those things at once, possibly taking the old ramen vendor and the offending tab at the same time.  
He sighed, ruling all those options out at the moment.

Perhaps later.

He shot the blond an evil look that promised pain, suffering and death. Naruto stared right back, with a calm collected gaze that could only be saying:

_Bring it.  
_  
Kakashi got to his feet, but nobody reacted, having decided that Team 7's Sensei was absolutely insane, so anything he did just had to be passed off as normal.  
Grey eye narrowed, shooting lightning bolts at the blond, who had also got to his feet.  
This would be it.

The ultimate showdown.

"Whatcha doin' Kakashi-sensei?" Kensuki looked up, brushing his wild hair out of his eyes.

"I'm dancing Kensuki." Kakashi said slowly, through gritted teeth "I'm _dancing_."

"No you're not."

"No _really_, I am."

Kensuki turned back to his friends, voice fading into the dull buzz of sound from the Genin teams. Nobody had noticed that both Naruto and Kakashi had disappeared.

* * *

"If I win." The silver haired man said, dropping back into a taijutsu stance "You pay the tab."

"And if I win?"

No sign of the blonds' previous smiles were present, his face a blank emotionless mask. Kakashi sighed, not relaxing for a second.

"Then I pay."

Naruto flexed his shoulders, loosening up his joints before sliding back his foot into his usual taijutsu style, the one that was taught to him by the Sandaime Hokage.

"Agreed."

Everything was still for a moment, nothing moved, like time had just stopped, everything so silent and calm. Then all hell broke loose. _Ram-Horse-Dragon.  
_  
"Doton: Doryuudan!"

Naruto sidestepped the attack, his face not even changing expression as the writhing mass of jutsu passed by. "Really Senpai…I think you've gotten a bit rusty."

Kakashi looked up, a little too late, the blonde's fingers already in a seal "Tiger? A Katon Jutsu?"

" Katon: Gouryuuka no Jutsu!"

Kakashi dived out of the way, not having time to counter the raging, dragon headed fireballs that were heading straight for him, his skin blistering from the heat. Yet it wasn't the intensity of the Jutsu that surprised him most, it was the fact that… _'An Uchiha Jutsu? When did he learn that?!'_ Grabbing the cloth of his hitai-ate, he yanked it upwards, before setting his mind toward his next Jutsu, ignoring the flaming, decimated forest behind him.  
And had to block against a thrust to the face, joints jolting painfully back into their sockets under the force of the blow.

"Had you made this about anything else…" He jumped backwards, skidding back on the loose dirt to avoid a sweeping kick aimed at his ankles. "Other than _ramen_…" This time it was Naruto who avoided a blow, crouching as Kakashi's fist sailed over his head. "I might have gone easy on you Senpai!"

He grabbed the Jounins' forearm and twisted it back, up behind his back, forcing Kakashi momentarily to his knee's… And then Kakashi disappeared in an explosion of electrifying smoke, causing Naruto to leap back, though no sign of his pain showed, he could still feel the electric currents running through his muscles.

_"Raiton Kage Bunshin? Where's the real Kakashi then?"_

He turned his gaze to the floor, expecting to be pulled down into the earth any second by Kakashi's Decapitation technique, caught off guard when nothing happened.

"You call _me_ rusty?"

Naruto looked up, spinning wildly for a second as he noticed four bunshins heading straight for him; he reacted in the only way he knew how.

"Fuuton: Akubi Kachuu!"

Everything seemed still for a moment, deathly still.  
Then everything was drawn towards the lone blond figure, the Shadow Clones, dirt, trees, rocks, drawn by a whistling wind as strong as a hurricane that ripped at everything in its path destroying, obliterating, annihilating…. Debris was flung in all directions, no longer recognizable.  
Naruto stood at the centre of the chaos, not excluded from the madness he had created, the wind tearing at his clothing, clawing at his eyes, shredding, slashing and cleaving at the unmoving figure. Slowly, Naruto raised his hands, as if commanding the wind itself to cease, and after a few seconds, it gradually died down.

"That was a bit much wasn't it?" Kakashi asked, brushing the dust from his clothes. Naruto shrugged, still not turning to face his Senpai.

"You were out of the way."

"So you knew?" Kakashi stopped brushing his clothing and looked up, raising a slender silver eyebrow. Naruto didn't reply. Kakashi chuckled, standing upright once more.

"You just wanted to try that out didn't you?" The Jounin laughed, suddenly realizing that the attack hadn't even been aimed at him.

"Wrong." The blonde muttered.

"What's the reason then?"

Silence.

"Nope." Kakashi shook his head slowly "I was right first time…"

"_Shuttup_." Naruto growled.

"So who wins? Me…or you?" Naruto turned, a scowl plain as day on his face.

"_Maah_…" Kakashi sighed "Whoever wins after the next couple of moves?"

The blond nodded, before revolving on the spot and driving his fist into the silver mans' chest, flinging the Jounin to the floor, who used the momentum from the strike to spin back to his feet.

"That was a bit rou-"

Kakashi hurled himself backward as the blonds' fist soared towards him, the amount of chakra concentrated in the fist made his teeth jolt together. The kid was totally serious. About Ramen. Yet the Hatake wasn't known as a prodigy for nothing.

* * *

Fuuton: Akubi Kachuu - Wind Element: Yawning Vortex - Use air pressure to suck in all surrounding objects and crush them. :D It's a happy Jutsu

Okay now for **Q and A's!**

**Why not just go back to Tora-chan for the katana kenjutsu training? **From Lexor.

Well Tora uses the typical Anbu ninjato, which is a straight blade, Naruto uses a katana, which is a little different, she probably could help, but she wasn't stalking Naruto at the time so it couldn't really be helped...

**SO Naruto is back in action now right? xD... WOO Hiraishin ftw..! **Vulc10900

Yeah, he's kinda beginning to think about it now...unlike before. and YAY for Hiraishin!

**When are the gennin gonna figure out who Kitsune is? **From Lord Ezra'eil

When he makes a mistake *wink* and he does have custom moves, as shown in the chapter above ^_^

**Will Naruto automatically get at least ANBU status once he decides to officially rejoin as a shinobi, or will he have to start over and work his way up through the ranks? **From Broken Flavors

Well I can't really imagine him as an Academy student...in fact... no...I can, hahahahaa *Chokes with laughter*

**How could Sasuke recognise the seals to an A-rank genjustu when he doesn't know any himself as far as I know? **From greywizard-dumblemort

Sasuke _was_ the rookie of the year... plus the fact, most Jutsu use the basic handseals, apart from clan Jutsu like the Nara and the Yamanaka...

**Why was Naruto so tired after staying up late to train? Doesn't he have awesome stamina?** From Failing Mentality

Yup he does in the real series, but I think that's because he has Kyuubi... in this story, he doesn't.

**Are you gonna have Naruto meet that secretary again and rub the 'sneaking pass him' in his face?** From PiratePenguin

Maaaybe~ *wink*

**Thanks to my Beta's! Tachi-chihime and Lazaros! You both rock in awesomeness! =D**


	12. Sensei?

*Laughs nervously* Emm... _Please_ don't kill me for not updating in like...forever, but like I said, this story won't be abandoned!

* * *

"That was a bit rou-"

He didn't manage to finish his sentence.  
Kakashi hurled himself backward as the blonds' fist soared towards him, the amount of chakra concentrated in the fist making his teeth jolt together; if he got caught by an attack like _that_ it would no doubt end up with him in the hospital. He _hated_ hospitals with an insane kind of fervor, he despised the pungent smell of disinfectant that lurked on every corridor, he loathed the plain white walls and the crisp white sheets, he detested the noise of echoing footsteps and the hushed murmurs behind closed doors…

So it was decided, he _wouldn't_ hold back in case he ended up in that white filled hell hole…

The fist missed him by millimeters, the kid was totally serious. And this was a fight about _ramen_ of all things. Yet the Hatake wasn't known as a prodigy for nothing, but this _was_ an almost-Hokage he was fighting!

If he just surrendered now whilst he had the full use of his body…

"I giv-"

His surrender was interrupted when a foot smashed into his ribcage, thankfully _not_ chakra enforced, but the faint aura could still be felt, Naruto had cancelled it at the last second. The pain raced through his body as he stumbled backwards, narrowly avoiding landing in ungainly heap on the dirt, staring up at the bright blue sky as a flock of birds passed overhead. Eight if you wanted to know the precise number.

'_So…fast'_ Kakashi muttered to himself _'I didn't even feel it coming…'_

Naruto stared; his foot still raised after the kick, having not moved a muscle, an odd half smile on his face.

Kakashi groaned.

"I expected you to move." The blond stated monotonously, his foot lowering slowly back to the ground in surprise. Kakashi winced, inspecting for any broken ribs that Narutos' attack could have caused, hissing in pain as he found a few.

"I was _expecting_ you to _listen_ to me." He hissed irritably, still staring up at the limitless expanse of azure sky,

"I didn't hear you say anything…" Naruto frowned, brushing the hair out of his eyes, reaching a hand out to pull the wincing Jounin to his feet.

"So does this mean…" the blond easily tugged the older man to his feet "I won…?"

There was a silence, in which neither of the friends said a word, broken only by the rustling of the leaves in the trees. Naruto started to laugh. The only thing that kept Kakashi from strangling the boy was the fact his ribs felt like they had been set on fire.

"You know…you really should go to the hospital or something …" Naruto pointed out as the silver haired man grimaced in pain, stopping for a second to catch his breath, hand pressed against his chest.

"I'll be fine." He growled.

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the Hatake, who was refusing to meet his gaze. "At least _I_ don't have to pay for all those bowls of ramen…" Naruto gloated, one eye on the path in front of them, the other watching Kakashi's reaction to his words, it was always fun to tease Kakashi.

It used to be his Anbu teams' old pastime, teasing Inu until he snapped... He sighed, before turning his mind to other things, the desire to annoy Kakashi suddenly disappearing like dust in the wind.

"Something wrong?"

Naruto glanced up at the older man, before returning his gaze back to the worn trail with a faint shake of his head. They began to walk in comfortable silence, only interrupted every so often by Kakashi hissing as the ribs jolted together painfully, but he never complained, which had Naruto even _more_ worried than usual.

It was almost a _law_.

Kakashi. _Always_. Complained.

It didn't matter whether it was a S-rank mission, D-Rank mission or a lazy day off, he always found something to complain about, it was when the silver haired man was _silent_ you had to really worry. Naruto turned towards his friend, blocking off any means of escape.

"I'm not giving you a choice now Senpai, whether you like it or not…you _are_ going to that hospital, you have your Genin to train!"

His blue eyes blazed fire, and within a second they were in the entrance of the hospital. Kakashi shook his head, the disorientated sensation he felt was proof that he had just been transported by a Shunshin, Naruto was already at the reception desk, dragging one of the nurses over.

It was precisely _then_ that Kakashi resigned himself to his fate. A fate filled with white rooms that had an overpowering aroma of antiseptic and beds with crisp, white sheets.

And no Naruto.

And no Genin Team.

Perhaps it wasn't _so_ bad.

* * *

Naruto lazily rolled onto his back, staring at the lonely, white clouds as they floated across the limitless blue, to anybody walking past he could have just been a normal child, relaxing in the warm afternoon sunlight, but his mind was working at a hundred miles an hour.

It had been three days since Kakashi had been released from hospital, and had gone to train the Uchiha, leaving his other two members to deal with their training alone.

"_Can't you just say no or something?"_

_Kakashi had laughed ruefully, his head buried in his palms._

"_Us ordinary mortals can't just go head on with the council like you used to."_

_Naruto shot the Cyclops an evil glare that made the older man shudder._

"_What about Sakura and Kensuki? You can't just ditch them and hope for the best?" Naruto spat bitterly, turning around so he had his back to his oldest friend "Can't you just train them all together? It _is_ all about teamwork after all…"_

"_It's not that simple, the council has changed since you left them to their own devices, Danzo runs the show now, apparently all Sasuke needs is a team of three to get through the first few exams…"_

"_So they're expendable?" Naruto barked with false laughter, his blue eyes flashed like steel in anger "After all us Konoha nin are told that teamwork is the answer to everything?"_

_Kakashi dropped his eyes to the floor, before softly muttering._

"_I just need your help."_

_The blondes' eyes softened, then slowly shut, a frustrated sigh escaping his lips._

"_I'll see what I can do."_

And that was why he was sat the way he was.

Kensuki? He was sure Tora could help him there, _if _she was back from all the recon missions she seemed to be getting recently.

Sakura? That was the _real_ problem, he had no idea with the girl, sometimes she seemed like an empty-headed fangirl, like so many of the konoichi in her Academy class, other times…like the time when she had seen Sasuke leaving a hole in his defense, or when she had seen the genjutsu the Academy teacher Iruka had used to disguise himself as an enemy nin.

He would have liked to have trained her himself, but he couldn't just waltz up and expect her to understand.

"_Oh hi Sakura, did I forget to tell you I'm Kitsune? It must have slipped my mind earlier, I know it really was a silly mistake and yes I was in line to become Hokage and then I left and now here I am! Let's get training!" _

No. Things just didn't work like that in the real world.

He needed someone that could help her become strong, improve her taijutsu yet break her fangirl tendencies. A malicious smile spread across his face as he sat bolt upright. _She_ would be… _Perfect_.

* * *

Mitarashi Anko was having a perfect day. It was pretty easy to achieve, it involved insane amounts of dango and nobody pestering her the entire 24 hours.

It was about to be rudely interrupted.

He had met Anko after only a year in Anbu, he had been one of her escorts when she had first arrived back in Konoha, she had spent the entire two months trying to see under the porcelain masks. They became friends, not particularly close, talking whenever they passed on the street. He hadn't spoken to her since he had left, how was he supposed to force her to train Sakura?

"Emm, Anko-san?"

She whirled around, eyes narrowing as she caught sight of the slightly familiar blonde brat standing in front of her, his hands dug deep into his non-descript jacket. A civilian.

"What is it brat? What do you want?" She snapped, her perfect day had been messed up by some random kid pestering her. How did he even find out her name?

"You don't remember me, huh." It didn't sound much like a question; it sounded more like a statement, his bright blue eyes dimmed a little.

He sounded… a little sad.

"Sorry?"

Naruto glowered up at her, and it was then she realized she had seen that exact same look a long time ago, it was a look that only one person could achieve, like a volcano on the very edge of erupting.

Anko bit her lip.

"Naruto?"

He grinned, which made the breath catch in her throat. The whole time she had known the boy, she had only ever seen him smile a handful of times.

"I guess you remembered then."

She nodded, for once uncharacteristically still and silent, Naruto kept smiling, but his request surprised her. "I have a favor to ask you, how do you feel about retraining a fangirl?"

A malevolent, sinister grin spread across her face and her eyes brimmed with a sadistic gleam. Perhaps her day wasn't _so_ bad after all. A few minutes later and he found himself sat at the nearest dango restaurant, discussing the details of the girls' upcoming training.

"So how come you've disappeared off the map for so long? Last I heard you were in line to follow Hokage-sama."

She finished her first plate of dango, and then moved onto her second. Naruto looked up from his daydreaming, a bitter look crossing his didn't know how to react; she stalled for a few seconds at a complete loss of what to do to make the boy cheer up.

The plate in front of him still full of dango which he prodded around the plate for a few seconds before they were removed and devoured by the purple haired konoichi in front of him.

"I left."

The dango were spat across the whole length of the restaurant, hitting a Chunin on the back of the head with a soft 'Slpuck' noise, and any complaints said Chunin was about to make were silenced by Anko's 'Killer Intent' look. If anybody had really cared, it broke the world record for dango spitting.

"You… what?!" She slammed her hands down on the table, knocking over the small vase at the centre of their table, not caring as the water spilt over the edge and trickled down onto the floor.

"Please Anko." Naruto murmured softly, without breaking eye contact "People are beginning to stare."

She glanced left and right, noticing the wide eyes and worried expressions that were on most people's faces. How had Naruto noticed them without breaking eye contact with her? She waited a couple of seconds, then the people began to turn back to their own conversations, gradually forgetting about the crazy woman shouting at the young boy.

"You…left?" Her voice was full of surprise, and sadness.

"2 years ago now." Naruto nodded wearily, a ghost of a smile playing across his face.

"And you've done _nothing_ since?"

"A bit here and there." He shrugged "Nothing much."

"And what was this request about then?"

The last piece of dango had been left on her plate, and she didn't look like she was about to pick it up until she had gotten to the very bottom of this mystery. Naruto sighed.

"It's Kakashi's Genin team; he's had the council on his back to train Uchiha Sasuke in the mighty ways of the Sharingan." Naruto spat, showing his intense dislike for the doujutsu "But it leaves the other two members in a bit of a bind, one I'm pretty sure can manage with his family, but Sakura came from a civilian family, she has nowhere to go."

Anko nodded but still the dango was left on her almost empty plate.

"To be honest, she's pretty useless in everything but book smarts, I've never seen her use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu, she has the basic academy Taijutsu stances, but she hasn't done anything with them, she has faster reflexes than most Genin her age and an almost limitless fangirl obsession over Uchiha Sasuke."

Naruto stopped, carefully analyzing Anko's reaction to her new students' skills, or the lack of.

"And I have _how_ long to train her?"

Hook, line and sinker, Naruto thought.

"About three weeks."

Anko smiled sweetly at the blonde in front of her.

"When do I meet this pathetic excuse for a konoichi?"

* * *

Kakashi burst into unceremonious laughter, then gracefully fell off where he had been sitting on his kitchen surface. Naruto sighed as the still sniggering man appeared above the cabinets again.

"You did _what?_"

"It's really not that funny Senpai."

"But…Anko? With…_Sakura_?" He disappeared with unrestrained laughter. Naruto rested his head in one of his hands with yet another sigh, trying to picture the man that was presently on the floor giggling like a little girl as the same man that he had fought and killed beside years ago.

"You don't seem to have much faith in your pupil."

"But…well…She's _Sakura_."

That sentence had a sobering effect on the Jounin-Sensei, who got to his feet and walked silently over to the table where Naruto sat, before he slumped down into one of the well worn chairs.

"So you don't care about her? Your teammate?"

Kakashi winced, each word biting into him like a sword blow, leaving nothing but a cold and empty feeling behind, as if everything had been yanked out from inside of him.

_"Those that break the rules and regulations are scum. But those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum."_

'_Obito...'_ He looked up to frosty blue eyes, and Kakashi could see the pure anger that was writhing just below the calmer surface. He wasn't this boys' Senpai anymore, in fact, he hadn't been for a long time now, it was easier to just pretend.

_To pretend…_

"You'd rather ignore her and hope she gets killed?" Again with that soft, emotionless voice that went through his very soul. He didn't know what he really thought about Sakura, she fawned over Sasuke, she ignored Kensuki, she had absolutely no skill in Taijutsu, Ninjutsu or Genjutsu, but her chakra control was above average, but only because she had such small reserves.

When he thought about it, she was like a more temperamental version of his teammate during the Third Great Shinobi War, Rin. He had thought the same about Rin when he had first met her, she was a medic-nin, with low reserves that preferred being back-up than actually harming somebody. He had thought her to be useless, extra baggage that he didn't need, but after so long he began to realize, she patched him up every time he got hurt with her medical jutsu, which took more control than he ever thought she had.

And at the very end, when she had to transplant Obitos' eye…

"You understand…right?"

Kakashi blinked at the sudden change in emotion on Naruto's part. The blonde laid back in the rickety chair, resting his feet on the dining table, staring vaguely at the ceiling.

"She's not just a stupid fangirl, she just does that in the hope that someone would take a _second_ to sit up and take notice that she actually exists…" He breathed out, a smile flickering across his lips "Bad choice in the self-centered _brat_ that is the Uchiha."

"Is that…" Kakashi finally mustered up the courage to speak "Why you put her with Anko?"

"Maybe…" Naruto admitted "But you have a Ninjutsu or a Genjutsu specialist in the Uchihas' Sharingan, Taijutsu or Ninjutsu in Kensuki, and then Poison Jutsus in Sakura, it rounds off your team nicely, though there will be a tendency to lean towards Ninjutsu with you as their Sensei of course."

Now that Kakashi sat back and thought about it…

"Just promise me…" Naruto began, rising up from his chair and walking towards the door "You won't abandon any of them…"

Just before he left, he turned back and smiled weakly.

"You got me?"

The door shut, and the spell on Kakashi was broken, the man leapt toward the door, intent on finding the boy and bringing him back inside, after what Tora had said to him about the time Naruto had broken down and shouted at her…

The door flew off the hinges, leaving a dent in the graying plaster wall opposite.

"Naruto?!"

But the blonde boy was long gone.

* * *

"So…Kakashi-Sensei sent you here?" Sakura awkwardly played with the hem of her red skirt, not making eye contact with the scary woman who looked like she ate Genin for breakfast who stood in front of her.

"That he did…now where shall we start off…How about…" Anko put on a fake look of contemplation, but she had already planned her torture the night before.

'_First thing for an attitude change…is a change of appearance'_

She smiled viciously.

"How about we go shopping…Sa~ku~ra~chan~?"

Sakura smiled uncertainly, was it a joke? Did this woman actually think that they should go shopping instead of training? Anko grabbed the girl roughly by the hand and began to drag the pinkette behind her, as she made a beeline for her favorite konoichi fashion shop.

Tora nursed the bruise on her right cheek, softly promising death to the blonde idiot when she saw him next. He had decided that she was the ideal Sensei for Kensuki since she had been the one to teach him the basics of the Ninja Arts, when she had offered him the job back, he had said.

'_Whoever wins?'_

Naruto won, naturally…for some reason Lady Luck was almost always by his side…she was glad nobody had taught him poker yet, or at least he had never brought it up in conversation. So now she was stuck on her two weeks off, training her nephew an easier version of her Taijutsu form. She had debated running off a few times, but she _knew_ for a _fact_ that the evil, sadistic, malicious blonde would drag her back kicking and screaming.

She went back to cursing the blondes' existence.

* * *

Ahhh how I enjoy writing Toras' scenes, she's not exactly _normal_... :D

Anyway, thanks to Lazaros for Beta-ing, and no Qs and As or I'm gonna be late for school...again *Sigh*


	13. Problem

He lazily dangled both of his feet off the edge of the ancient, decrepit wall that he was sat on, watching the various people, civilian and shinobi alike, passing below him with an almost detached kind of interest. There was an over-excited, almost anxious buzz in the air, like an electric current, even now so early in the morning; the people were already getting prepared for what was to come.

The Chunin Exams.

He watched an Anbu team briefly flitter into his field of vision, stopping very briefly to talk to a patrol of Chunin before disappearing off towards the direction of the Black Ops headquarters. The sun was warm and bright, but there was the smell of rain in the thick air, but no clouds in sight. Odd but not uncommon for a Fire country autumn. |He could hear the dry leaves rustle behind the tall, pale walls that surrounded him and he caught himself wondering if the leaves had turned red. A metallic glint caught his eye. Naruto squinted, catching sight of an Otogakure hitai-ate glinting in the pale early morning light, the musical note glaring tauntingly up at him as he tensed, unintentionally cracking the concrete under his fingers. The dark night when he'd shadowed Team 7 into the Shi No Mori flickered back into his memories. They belonged to an unfamiliar Genin team walking purposely toward the Ninja Academy. Their Sensei walked slightly behind them, a confident, long-legged stride that told of a masterful base of taijutsu and a perfect poise that wouldn't crack under pressure. The team themselves didn't appear to be particularly worrisome, they lacked the confidence of their Sensei as they peered down shadowy side streets, there appeared to be little team chemistry and the female member of the team appeared physically weak. If Naruto had to guess, the Sensei hadn't been their Sensei for long and the team had been hastily put together not long before the announcement of the Chunin Exams. He watched them enter the academy doors to where the first part of the gruelling exam was to be held.

'_What are _they_ doing here?'_

He breathed out in agitated annoyance, cursing the very existence of Otogakure no Sato who _just didn't feel_ like giving up on whatever stupid plan they had in mind. Who _was_ the Otokage anyway? Would he be coming to oversee the exams with the Hokage? It was a mystery to him, he hadn't even thought about the Otokage's appearance until now. He pushed off lightly from the wall and with a half hearted jump, he landed lightly among the bustling people in the street below and without hesitation disappeared amongst the constantly moving bodies.

Nobody saw him…nobody ever did.

* * *

Sarutobi Hiruzen dismissed the Anbu guards that stood silently on either side of the entrance to his office with an unenthusiastic flick of his hand, before slowly opening the door. The old hinges emitted a faint whine as it swung. He was glad to have a moment of peace without interruption - He had thought it ludicrous that he was one of the strongest ninja in Konoha but it was deemed necessary to have 24/7 protection. He remembered having to explain the politics and appearances of the bodyguard protection to Naruto a few years back, when the boy had laughed at the Anbu's refusal to leave the Sandaime Hokage for the evening. He was sure the Anbu would finish their errand in a few minutes, it was hardly as though he was going to be helplessly ambushed in such a short amount of time.

The old man entered his office, noticing that his protective seals were still in place and he relaxed, turning to shut the door behind him before he heard the sound of paper rustling against paper. Hiruzen immediately fell back into his defensive taijutsu stance, carefully watching the strange figure behind his wooden desk rifling through the carefully stacked paperwork for the Chunin Exam he had left there only the day before. What surprised the old Sandaime the most was the fact that the intruder didn't even look up but kept on carefully searching through the paperwork with an analytical eye. There was no sign that the infiltrator had even realised that he had been discovered in the act.

"Any reason in particular that you're in here?"

Only now the stranger finally looked up, his vibrant blue eyes meeting watery grey, before they dropped back to the paperwork once more and the Hokage relaxed, slowly walking towards the desk.

"The question still stands you know." He laughed good naturedly, removing his pipe from his official robes, and lighting it with a low level katon jutsu, sighing with pleasure as he took the first puff. The pipe was yanked from his mouth and sharply set down on the desk, away from any paperwork that could have accidentally been set on fire by any stray embers falling from the rim. The Hokage forced himself not to squawk with surprise at the sudden movement, or rebuke the blond, but he fell silent when he remembered Naruto's never-ending hatred of smoking.

The boy certainly looked troubled, even more so than usual, even if his blue eyes were icily calm and he moved with a certain precision that was ingrained in him after so many years of strict training, Sarutobi could still tell when his almost-grandson was bothered or worried about something. Like now for example.

"I saw something." was the blunt reply to his earlier question and when the Hokage waited for more explanation, he got nothing. The old man sat down wearily in his well worn chair as the blond continued to search through the papers, absently catching one as it floated towards the floor.

'_A background check on the Chunin participants from Namigakure no Sato?'_

"What's wrong?" the Hokage asked softly, his eyes passing between the sheet in his hands and the blonde beside him. Naruto turned towards the old man, and Sarutobi he thought for a second that an expression akin to guilt flittered across his almost-grandson's face, before he shook his head and sighed wearily.

"Oto."

The Hokage's eyes flashed like tempered steel.

"Did they-?"

Naruto half smiled, the corner of his lip turning up ever so slightly before he shook his head.

"Nothing, just…"

He trailed off, before turning back to the paperwork and pulled a sheet from the very bottom of the precariously balanced stack.

"I need to borrow this."

Sarutobi raised a hand to stop him, to call him back and have him explain what was wrong… but when he blinked, the boy was gone. All the windows were still sealed, the only door in the room was still closed and hadn't been opened plus there was no remaining chakra signature to show that anybody had preformed a jutsu within the last couple of hours.

"Show-off." The old man muttered, before rearranging the constantly growing piles of work around him and setting his sights on demolishing them before the Chunin Exam Tournament.

* * *

_Ikeu Seki_

_Village: Otogakure No Sato_

_Rank: Jounin Sensei_

_Jutsu Affiliation: Hibiki no Jutsu_

_Gender: Male_

_Age: 32_

_Birth Date: December 2nd_

_Height: 180cm_

_Weight: 64kg_

_Blood Type: B_

_Kinuta Dosu_

_Village: Otogakure No Sato_

_Rank: Genin_

_Jutsu Affiliation: Kyomeisen_

_Gender: Male_

_Age: 14_

_Birth Date: June 12th_

_Height: 156cm_

_Weight:49Kg_

_Blood Type: A_

_Tsuchi Kin _

_Village: Otogakure no Sato_

_Rank: Genin_

_Jutsu Affiliation: Suzu Senbon no Genkaku _

_Gender: Female_

_Age:14_

_Birth Date: July 6th_

_Height: 150cm_

_Weight: 39Kg_

_Blood Type: O_

_Abumi Zaku_

_Village: Otogakure no Sato_

_Rank: Genin_

_Jutsu Affiliation: Zankuha_

_Gender: Male_

_Age: 14_

_Birth Date: September 14th_

_Height: 157cm_

_Weight: 49Kg_

_Blood Type: AB_

Naruto sighed. So there _was_ something wrong - as he'd first suspected. The piece of the paper in to his pocket just reaffirmed his suspiscions. No matter how many times he scoured through the names again and again, hoping that he was actually going crazy and it was only the paranoia playing up again, he realised with a reluctant kind of certainty that there most _certainly_ _was_ a problem. A Big Problem.

Where was the name of the teams' Sensei?

The ninja registry had _every_ single name of _every_ ninja from all the ninja villages, down to the exact date that they entered the Academy and passed their Genin exams. Even he himself was in one of the books that lined the seemingly endless corridor. All three of the Genin were pretty easy to find, since they were relatively new entries to the Oto ninja registry, but the sensei…was nowhere to be found. To many other people this wouldn't seem like much of a big deal, but Naruto had organized the exams more than just once or twice, and he _knew_ it was regulation for all members of a team to be registered for the exams, and have a thorough check before being allowed into the hosting village. He had definitely seen a Sound Jounin, with long dark hair and cold unfriendly eyes. So why was he not in the Otogakure registration book? How had he been let into Konoha? What was up with Oto?

First there was the shinobi that attacked in the Forest of Death and _just_ after the suspicious Genin team, then 'Classified Information' that the Hokage refused to talk to him about it, and Tora's mission… He stopped; dread washing like ice through his body. Her mission was an information recon, on the Snake Sannin, Orochimaru, who had been sighted in Ta no Kuni, near Otogakure no Sato. So was _he_ of all people was connected in this mess?

He crumpled the paper into a ball with his hands, and then threw it into the bin with an unconcerned throw over his shoulder, already leaving out of the door. The keeper of Konoha's official documents found the book of Otogakure's registered ninjas discarded haphazardly on the floor in the wrong section, but no-one could ever explain how it had made its way there.

* * *

"_Don't you think…?" Tora scrunched her nose up underneath her mask as she ran through the tree tops "That Kitsune is a bit...young?" _

_There was silence, not a noise as the three shadows passed through the forest toward their destination, after yet another successful mission._ _The Anbu in question was miles away, his chakra flaring left, right and centre. Inu giggled in a very unmanly way before speeding gracefully ahead, leaving Yama and Tora to contemplate on the new member by themselves. Tora was silent for a second, the empty, coal black abysses that were her eyes watching the strange silver haired man disappear into the thick foliage._

"_What was that about?" Yama muttered in annoyance "What does _he_ know about this boy that we __**don't**__?"_

_Tora opened her mouth to say something, but was rapidly silenced when she had to dodge a shuriken aimed at her head. Melting into the shadow of a tree nearby she watched with mild interest as a shadow fell from the branches and landed with a thud on the forest floor, followed by the sickly smell of blood. A quick glance showed it was from the band of shinobi they had decimated a few hours before, he was obviously a survivor. Tora grimaced._

_Well…He wasn't a survivor anymore._

"_He's been following you the most of the way back."_

_Tora turned sharply, kunai already in her hand, her mind skimming through the various strategies she could use as she leapt forward._ _There was a sigh and then a deafening crash as metal crashed against metal when her kunai clashed with the mysterious enemy's weapon. She dived backwards across the clearing and landed awkwardly on a thin branch that almost snapped under the sudden weight of her body, her eyes darted left and right searching for the owner of the mysterious voice._

"_You know, you could have just said hi or something. I find being greeted with a kunai a bit…rude." There was a low chuckle from the treetops. Tora jumped in surprise as the mask of Kitsune flashed silver in the moonlight._

"_Sorry if I scared you." Kitsune muttered, and Tora could _hear_ the smirk in his voice. She opened her mouth but the boy that had been next to her just seconds ago had completely disappeared. There was absolutely no trace that anybody had been next to her only moments ago._

"_They were kage bunshin that you sensed earlier; it's a way of covering up our trail as we head home." She heard her captain Inu, mutter from behind her. "He's actually been shadowing us most of the way." _

_Tora squawked and fell off the madly swaying branch, landing precariously on the branch below._

"_Why the hell did you have to come up and scare me like that!"_

_Inu sniggered, and then disappeared into the dark shadows, Yama was nowhere to be seen._

"_Men!" Tora muttered before stalking off into the night._

"_Why can't he just let me through for once….?"_

* * *

"I need to speak to Hokage-sama."

There was the staring match of the century being held in the reception of the Hokage Tower. The Secretary VS Uzumaki Naruto. Lightning bolts crackled through the frosty air and everybody around them turned a blind eye on the massacre that was sure to come.

"_You_!" The man hissed, almost rising from his chair in fury, Naruto's face was as impassive as a brick wall, giving no indication that he had even heard the furious comment.

"I need to speak to Hokage-sama." It was as monotonic as a grey wall in winter.

"He's _busy!_" The bespectacled man spat in answer, slamming his hands down on the desk, fire burning with an unseen hate in his dull brown eyes.

"It's a matter of grave importance to the security of Konohagakure no Sato." He muttered between gritted teeth.

"Look kid." The man snapped, what little left of his sanity remained close to breaking point "There's no point into trying to trick me, I've seen it all..-"

Naruto tuned the man out, not bothering to even listen to a word of the ego trip unfolding in front of him. "I need to speak to Hokage-sama."

"Anbu! I need this…_kid_…to be escorted out!" He yelled at the Anbu squad guarding the staircase, and Naruto realized with a little bit of regret that these were all newbies, who wouldn't give him a chance to 'accidentally' slip through their clutches.

"I need to speak to Hokage-sama." Naruto repeated grudgingly, ready to leap over the desk and throttle the man. Mid-way through his murderous day dream he was interrupted.

"Kitsune-_sama_, the Hokage will see you now." He turned to look up at the man, not sure how he should react to being called by that name. The Anbu that had called him looked down calmly, and a flash of recognition passed through Naruto. The red crescent shapes that circled his eyes marked him as one of the elite. An Anbu Captain. Registration number 010992.

"Nice to see you're doing well." Naruto nodded to the Anbu as the secretary stared between the two figures like a fish on dry land, stammering the occasional unintelligible word.

"How is Inu-senpai?" the Anbu asked curiously, who was also ignoring the secretary who had face planted on his own desk.

Naruto turned the corners of his mouth up in to a small grin."Well he still reads those smut books, so he can't be too bad. Visit him sometime."

The Anbu nodded slowly, before escorting the blonde to the bottom of the stairs. "Eh…Kitsune-sama?"

Naruto turned back to look at the masked man, who looked a bit sheepish, refusing to meet the blue eyed gaze.

"Hmm?"

"I would…appreciate it if you didn't tell the Hokage I let you through…"

"_He lied…?"_

The man laughed at seeing the obvious confusion on the usually stoic boys' face.

"I owe you a couple of favours Kitsune-sama." Then the man laughed again "Well…if you can call my life a favour."

"…I see."

"Well-" The man waved his hand in a brief goodbye "Go, before someone figures out that the Hokage didn't actually let you in."

Naruto nodded, before climbing the stairs and opening the Hokage's door.

* * *

"But Hokage-sa-!"

The Hokage shook his head sadly, his tired eyes closed.

"I'm sorry Naruto-kun. There's nothing that you can do anymore."

Naruto gripped the edge of the wooden desk in a vice grip, splintering in between his fingers as they dug fiercely into the wood. "If you ju-."

"We've already got Anbu Team 2 doing surveillance and two more Anbu teams patrolling the borders."

"There's no way that only three Anbu teams are going to be able to take that bastard down! You taught him yourself right? Who gave you the right to sacrifice those teams just because of some _stupid_ exams?!"

"Na-."

"If you just call the exams off, there's another cha-."

Sarutobi interrupted the blond once again with a wave of his hand, getting up from the chair to stand by the window, his back to the glowering boy.

"There's very little evidence and I can't rely on your word Naruto, you're no longer and operative of this Village. There were no members of Otogakure to be found in the Forest, not even any trace of blood or any sign of camps or outposts. It appears I've let you have too loose of a rein, but I cannot have you jeopardising the safety of my people for the sake of your own personal vendettas. You're acting like a spoilt child-."

"But the books!"

"Books have mistakes from time-to-time! I understand that you want to help Naruto, but maybe you should have thought about that before you left!"

There was a sudden deadly quiet, where two indomitable wills clashed ferociously but no further loud words were shared, instead the words became subdued and sharp.

"I understand perfectly _Hokage-sama._" Naruto sneered "Are you worried about the reputation of your village?"

The Hokage closed his eyes in regret, he wished he had the time to deal with Naruto, but he didn't. He knew the boy wanted to help, but he could risk his VIllage following shadows. He'd allowed Naruto too much leeway and spoilt him. The boy would have to be stopped, in case the Chunin Exams were endangered by his fools errand.

"Ki, Mushi…remove him."

The Anbu, having returned from their mission, had remained hidden in the shadows of the office. They suddenly blurred towards Naruto, and seconds later a loud thud followed by a sickening crack echoed throughout the room.

"Don't worry." The blond spat "I can see myself out, _Hokage-sama_. You can go back to pretending that your village is as pure as crisp snow…"

Footsteps.

"Perhaps it's time someone told you just how black the soul of Konoha truly is."

* * *

:D

Damn that Orochimaru! He's so evil!

...

Please don't kill me? I've just spent time writing more chapters! Honest!


	14. Departing Promise

_Be Afraid! Be very Afraid!_

_I updated twice in two days!_

_The world__** must **__be ending!_

* * *

_"It was all going so well until I opened my mouth and said something so stupid…"_ Naruto rolled over onto his back, staring blankly at the stark, white ceiling above him in. _"Can't he see that Orochimaru is going after the Sharingan? And he'll stop at nothing to get it?"_ He was beyond frustrated; those he had sworn to protect where now sheep in the lion's den…completely unaware that they were going to be devoured.

_"I'm sorry Naruto-kun. There's nothing that you can do anymore."_

The Hokage had pretty much told him to keep his nose out of shinobi affairs, otherwise there would be _consequences_. Civilians weren't supposed to meddle. He wondered briefly how different his situation would be if he still held his old position…or if he possibly held the Hokage's position. _"It wouldn't be like this…"_ Naruto thought with a bitter grin, his eyes like chips of ice as the hatred welled up inside him _"That traitorous bastard wouldn't still be breathing!"_

Naruto gave up on staying at his apartment, and instead decided to go for a walk around Konoha, hoping to rid his mind of the impending doom the village was sure to face. Slowly he walked down the main street, his feet treading a path towards the Academy without even realising. He watched as Anko broke through the window into the Academy, to then jump out of it seconds later followed by what he guessed were most of the Genin teams, others spilled out of the Academy doors and followed from the ground. He didn't see the team from earlier. He wondered if they had failed...it didn't seem likely.

'_But it's not my problem is it?'_ he thought bitterly. His thoughts briefly turned to his Senpai's team, and he wished them luck.

* * *

"S-sasuke-k-kun?"

"Hn?"

"There's somebody approaching…"

Sasuke turned to look at his pink haired team mate as she focused on her duty, scanning the area for other Genin teams who had still not managed to acquire their own scroll. "How long will they be?"

"I'd say…about a minute."

Kensuki turned, for once his brown eyes were completely serious and his face held no hint of a smile. Both Sakura and Kensuki had changed far more than Sasuke had first expected, Sakura had apparently been learning poison style jutsu from a kunoichi he had never heard of, but he silently thanked her for converting Sakura from an annoying _stalker_ into a half way decent team mate. She had also changed her clothing, looking much more like the second proctor - Mitarashi something or other, with a tan trench coat lined with senbon and fishnet leggings. Her usual red dress missing in favour of a nondescript black ensemble, but Sasuke didn't care much about it. Kensuki hadn't changed much in comparison, apart from the fact he was more serious in his approach to enemies and the Uchiha wondered if it was anything to do with his aunt._"That Iwa Genin certainly won't be able to pursue his dream to be a shinobi. Not after Kensuki was through with him."_

"Any chance to out run them?"

Sakura shook her head as she stood to her feet, removing a senbon from the folds of her coat. "They're moving too quickly, their speed is way above average."

Kensuki spun a few shuriken around his fingers, and they waited.

* * *

He pulled up a seat at the bar in Ichiraku's, which was for some reason, almost completely empty. "I'll have…a miso please."

"I didn't see you there Naruto-kun." Ayame smiled, noticing the boy was even more miserable than usual "I'll get it right away!"

He nodded in thanks, before going back to staring at the wooden table top.

"Yo, Naruto-sama."

The blond turned, and drove his foot into the speaker's chest, throwing him backwards into the street where he landed heavily on his back.

"Call me that again Sarutobi Asuma…" Naruto hopped off his stool and walked over to downed Jounin sensei "And I won't hesitate to kick you so hard you'll never procreate again." He plucked the cigarette from between the mans' teeth and snuffed it out under his booted foot. Asuma gulped and grinned as Naruto waved and smiled sweetly at a confused looking Kurenai who conveniently happened to have been walking past.

"Understood?" Naruto growled, his sweet innocent looking expression suddenly turning much more evil and sadistic. Asuma would have sworn there was a red glint in the boys' eye. The bearded man nodded back and Naruto turned to walk back to the ramen stand, beckoning for him to follow.

"Here you go Naruto-kun." Ayame smiled before disappearing into one of the back rooms.

"You wanted something Sarutobi?"

Asuma pursed his lips in annoyance at someone so much younger than him casually dismissing him with such an informal air. Then he realised, that the boy had just managed to land a kick with so much force that it actually catapulted him off his feet. "I just came to say hi, is it such a crime?"

Naruto turned, his face devoid of any emotion and a few noodles dangling from his mouth, but Asuma gulped as the temperature dropped a couple of degrees when he remembered the threat. "You've said hello and now you can go and see how your Genin team are doing."

Sarutobi Asuma was not known for being much of smooth talker, so he had absolutely no idea that he was signing his own death warrant.  
"Huh? What put you in such a bad mood?" There wasn't much warning as a bowlful of steaming hot liquid and noodles came hurtling towards his face.

"Thanks Ayame-chan!"Coins were deposited on the counter and then the blond left.

Asuma violently twitched once and then was still.

* * *

"It's been longer than a minute Sakura…" Kensuki whispered nervously, his eyes still darting left and right on the lookout for their enemy.

"They…slowed down." The pinkette mumbled, looking towards the other two for a moment slightly ashamed.

"They're watching us…" Sasuke muttered "Seeing what our weak points are so they can use them to our advantage."

"Well we already figured out _that_ much almighty Uchiha." Kensuki chuckled, unable to keep the slight wobble out of his voice "But something isn't right here."

"We should keep moving then." Sakura said. The senbon weren't quite steady in her shaky hands "If they're not coming at us just yet."

The two boys nodded in agreement, before the three of them sped into the foliage without breaking formation.

* * *

"Nezumi, Tori, Uma, report."

"Hai Taichou!" They chorused. "Unknown chakra signal was detected in the west, near gate 11 approximately two minutes ago." Nezumi stated. "Direction north-east."

"Not even towards the tower…" Tora muttered, resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose in frustration before looking up to her three team mates "We shadow the signal and intervene _only_ when there is an unneeded attack or the discovery of an enemy to Konoha's peace."

"But-." Tori started but was cut off by her Anbu captain.

"You forget that this is the Chunin exams_...people do __die_." The youngest Anbu member flinched away from the cold tone of her captains' voice, which seemed so devoid of any emotion. Little did Tori know that the fact that Tora's nephew was somewhere in the endless forsaken forest was slowly breaking her captain apart inside.

* * *

"W-Who's there?" Kensuki called, as his voice wavered in nervous anticipation. There was a low chuckle and a Kusagakure-nin stepped out of the shadows, idly flicking a kunai around his finger in an unspoken threat. Sakura whimpered and inched behind the two boys, not even her eccentric Sensei had prepared her for this.

"I see you got both scrolls you need." The man chuckled darkly "What a shame…" He removed the earth scroll from his weapons pouch and tossed it into the bushes nonchalantly.

"S-sasuke-kun…h-he's the one that f-followed us…"

The raven haired boy nodded once, before returning his gaze back to the strange man who was slowly making his way toward them.

"Oh…so you noticed me? I'm very surprised…Tell me…who is your sensei?"

None of Team 7 spoke, but instead slowly brought their weapons into their hands, fully intending to confront their newest enemy together.

"Oh…" The man smiled eerily "And I was so enjoying our little _chat_."

"Watch out Sasuke!" Kensuki yelled, diving into the Uchiha to get him out of the way of the kunai that the enemy had thrown.

"Well…" Sakura couldn't stop the shudder as the man stared _hungrily_ at her black haired team mate, before grinning wildly. "This is going to be fun!"

* * *

"What's wrong Taichou?"

"That chakra signal…it's increased…" Tora murmured "Then there's a fight…"

She felt completely numb inside like somebody had poured ice down her throat. There was a possibility that her nephew was fighting one of the most dangerous missing-nin there was…yet there was nothing she could do. Nobody his level could go head to head with the snake sannin and live to tell the tale afterwards.

_"Kensuki…hold on…"_

* * *

He absent mindedly noticed that his shirt was turning a funny red colour and that his head hurt as he woozily stumbled to his feet. Both Sakura and Sasuke weren't in a much better condition. The Kusa nin was way above the genin average, he batted off their best techniques with as little as a wave of his hand. Kensuki held out his palm to steady himself against a tree, already planning his next attack on the man who he was sure was invincible, but his legs weren't listening to his brain.

"Well Sasuke-kun…" The man _slithered _toward the boy who was just crawling back to his feet "I'm _disappointed…_your brother could have done so much better than this…"

Neither of them saw Sasuke throw himself at the man until he was thrown back at them, narrowly missing a collision with a tree. "Don't bring…" Sasuke growled with blood flowing freely down his lip, his eyes glowing red with the Sharingan "_Him_ into this."

"That's more like it Sasuke." Kensuki grinned, staggering to stand next to his downed team mates "You really shouldn't…give up so easily."

Sakura nodded in agreement, a senbon held tightly between her fingers as her pink hair was matted with her own blood.

"You don't need them though? Do you Sasuke?" the man whispered "All you want is the power to kill Ita-."

"Maybe _that's_ true." Sasuke spat, ignoring Kensuki's proffered hand instead helping himself to his feet. His team mates flinched at his harsh words, but put their own survival at the forefront of their minds.

"Then perhaps…" The Kusa-nin was suddenly in front of Sasuke, his teeth sinking into the Uchiha bare flesh as black ink whirled underneath his skin to form an unknown seal. "You want _my_ help?"

Sasuke screamed in pain-ridden agony, sinking to his knees with both hands pressed firmly against his neck.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura was at his side in an instance, using her limited knowledge of medical jutsu in an attempt to make the mark disappear.

"What did you do to him Orochimaru?" The impostor Kusa nin looked up to see four Anbu, with their weapons drawn ready to attack.

Orochimaru shrugged. "Sasuke will come to me to seek power…"

"That won't happen." Tora muttered darkly, fingers tightening on her ninjato as her heart beat wildly in her chest "We will _stop_ you!"

* * *

That was…! Naruto's head snapped up and his eyes widened as his chest constricted in fear. He recognized those two faint chakra signals as if they were his own. What was he supposed to do?! For a moment he was racked with indecision, before disappearing in the direction of training area 44.

* * *

Tora sighed, turning towards her team members sadly, then softly muttered.

"Nezumi, Uma, Tori. I want you to get out of here." They turned to their captain in complete shock, all of them ready to protest, they didn't want to leave their captain to face against an S class-nin on her own. "Take the kids, and get out of here, take them to the tower. I'll hold him off." She whispered.

"Tora-taichou you-" Tori started, but was cut off by a taunt from Orochimaru, who was advancing steadily towards the Genin, who were trembling in fear. Tora turned quickly, and said one thing before she launched herself towards Orochimaru.

"I better get famous for this!" Tori reached out to grab her captains' arm, but was held back by Uma, who had stayed silent throughout the whole ordeal.

"We need to get them out of here." He motioned towards the kids, who were staring blankly at the fight between one of the finest Black Ops members and an S class missing nin. When Tora looked back, her nephews team had gone and a solitary tear worked its way down the inside of her mask, making the porcelain stick to her bare cheek. _'I'll see you later…Kensuki-kun'_

"Something the matter?" Orochimaru spat as he drove the kusanagi towards her torso.

"Nothing that you need to worry about!" She dodged the kusanagi, but barely as it scraped across the surface of her Anbu armour which threw her off balance for a second.

"Ninpou: Fuusajin!" She yelled, noticing with a distinct pleasure as the snake cringed against the buffeting wind for a moment before regaining his composure; she flung herself out of the way as his ninjutsu was completed.

"Fuuton: Daitoppa!" The air from her previous attack was rendered useless as the smaller blast of wind levelled a few of the older trees to the ground, causing even more dust to rise into the air. Tora spun around, loosing sight of the elusive snake sannin for a moment longer than she should have, suddenly feeling a chakra enhanced foot connect with her chin that sent her sprawling to the ground. Her mask clattered to the ground next to her.

"After all that…" Orochimaru purred "And I thought that you were going to fight _back_?"

He laughed, making her feel sick as he moved slowly towards her, his Kusanagi still in hand and as she looked for her ninjato, she saw it a few meters in front of her. Orochimaru was in the way. She gritted her teeth, realising that if she died now the Sannin would most likely catch up to her team and kill them all. She needed to keep on going. Just for them. She twisted to her left, kicking out with her left foot as it caught Orochimaru by surprise and sent him stumbling back. Tora managed to get to her feet and prepare for the next attack, narrowly dodging a fist that was meant for her head and lunge towards her ninjato, grabbing it once again between her fingers.

"What are you fighting for? Do you really hate me?"

Tora fought against another wave of tears as she thought about her family. Her brothers' family...she would probably would never see Kensuki make Chunin. Kakashi, she would never tell him off for reading smut in public or for stealing her teriyaki ever again. Naruto, he hadn't fulfilled his promise to her yet, he'd _promised_ her. Keii, would he ever know what had happened to her? She doubted it. Yama... Yes, she would see _him_ again soon.

"You shouldn't let your mind wonder!" the snake Sannin spat venomously, sending several katon jutsu in her direction that collided with the surrounding forest, setting the foliage alight with dancing flames.

'_I can't...keep this up...any longer...' _She thought as she was caught by yet another of Orochimaru's chakra enhanced blows. There was no way she could escape unless the Hokage came; there was little chance of that now. There was also a foreign substance in her system, she detected some kind of poison but she could not name it and it was spreading quickly. Orochimaru must have applied it during one of his had only one option. The Kabushi no mai's forbidden move.

The Kabushi kyuukyoku no mai.

It was similar to the opening of the chakra gates, except it had a tiny percent chance of survival; it pumped chakra to overloading point within the body and then in the space of a few seconds, erupted into the opponent with the users last blows. Then severe chakra loss would cause the user to die in a matter of minutes if they were not treated quickly. She had used it only once before and had spent the following month in hospital. The after effects, coupled with whatever poison was flowing around her body would surely kill her.

It would be her final chapter. Yet she would rest easy if Orochimaru was ripped from the world.

"Ninpou: Kabushi kyuukyoku no mai."

Orochimaru stepped back as the almost dead woman stumbled to her feet, surrounded by a nimbus of writhing, electric blue chakra. "It's over." Although it was unclear if she was talking about he situation, or that of the Snake Sannin's.

Tora leapt forward, her speed greatly increased by the overflowing amount of chakra running through her coils, and landed a blow to the man's' side, noting with a satisfaction as blood was sprayed from his lips. The twisted and drove her knee into his chin, knocking his neck back with a sickening crack. Then, with her remain energy she kicked him squarely in the gut, knocking him backwards into the tree line where he disappeared from her rapidly fading sight.

* * *

Naruto arrived just as she collapsed to the floor. "NERUKI!" He yelled, at her side in a second, searching for any signs of life. He relaxed a little when he felt a pulse.

"H-hey you." Blood seeped from the corner of her mouth as she attempted a weak smile. Naruto clutched her hand tighter.

"Don't talk Neruki-chan...We need to get you he-"

She laughed feebly, blood bubbling more freely past her lips and dripping down her chin, the blond boy carefully wiped it from her pale skin. "We know...that's not going to happen..."

He cradled her head, softly wiping her hair out of her eyes, the light slowly fading from the vibrancy he remembered. Ignoring the scarlet blood that was drenching his clothes and her unsteady breaths against his side. "It's my job to be the pessimist."

She smiled again, but it steady turned to a heart stopping grimace of agony as her chakra coils began to destroy themselves. The poison suddenly speeding up as her blood flow increased. All he could do was hold her close, he felt so utterly helpless.

"Tell them..." she whispered softly "That I loved them."

His eyes widened, fingers digging harshly into her clammy, cold and pale skin. "You can tell them you-"

Tora interrupted him with a weakened waved of her hand and Naruto was painfully reminded of a time when she wasn't covered in her own blood. "If Kensuki-kun... passes the Chunin exams...tell him I always knew he would." She grinned, suddenly oblivious to the pain "And... if he doesn't, then tell... him that there's always a next time so... good luck Kiddo"

Naruto nodded once, barely able to breathe or move as he held one of his most precious family members dying in his arms. "Tell Kakashi... that I will be the most kickass poltergeist in the world... and when his smut books... go missing, he knows... whose grave to spit at."

"Neruki-chan don't talk, if you just save your strength..." Naruto pleaded blue eyes wide with a grief, desperation and sorrow.

"We...both know...that travelling would...kill me... Please, tell Izumi and Aniki that... they can't hide it forever."Her breaths were getting shorter and more frantic as her body began to shut down. "And...promise me..." She clasped the younger boys hand with her own. "You'll remember to fulfil your promise..."

_"So why'd you join Inu-senpai?" the tiny blonde asked the teenager curiously. Kakashi shrugged, sliding his mask off his face in one smooth movement._

_"I suppose I...just did."_

_Naruto scrunched his face up in confusion._ _"Why can we never get a straight answer from you baka-senpai?" he exclaimed childishly, before falling back to rest against the tiles of the house the team was lying on._

_"What about you Tora?"_

_She turned towards the boy, also sliding her mask off her face, leaving it to sit next to her in the baking sunlight._ _"I was bored." She shrugged "It's not a very good answer."_

_Naruto turned to Yama, who didn't bother to remove the mask._

_"It was what my family wanted." the dark haired man muttered bitterly._ _Tora smiled, leaping towards the stoic male and sitting on his shoulders before beginning to plait his dark hair._

_"Go bother Kakashi!" Yama attempted to swat the girl from his shoulders, but she clung on so fiercely that he soon gave up on the idea. Instead he sat and smouldered as his hair was plaited and pinned up by butterfly clips that magically appeared from Tora's direction._

_"What Yama means to say, is that his older brother is one of the higher ups, and it seemed the right thing to have done." Kakashi offered, noticing the pale red tinge of a blush covering Tora's cheeks as she continued to mess with her teammate's hair._

_"What about you Kitsune-kun?" She asked._

_"Well...my reason seems too serious compared to yours..." he chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head out of habit. "I wanted to protect the village in the best possible way that I can...If my father sacrificed his life for the village then in my lifetime it will always be a free village.."_

_Tora smiled, tugging viciously at Yama's hair when he tried to escape._

_"Is that a promise?"_

_"Huh?"_

_Kakashi smiled his trademark smile._ _"Do you hold us to that?" He asked, brushing his silver hair back off his face. "Do you promise to protect Konoha and everything in it?"_

_"Well of course..."_

_"Then it's a promise?" She asked excitedly. The blond nodded in return._

She grinned, it was ruined by the river of sticky red that made its' way down her face and pooled around them both. Her skin was icy to touch and her skin was turning marble white, they both knew with dreading certainty that she would not live for much longer.

"I promise." Naruto muttered softly "I promise you I will look after everyone. I promise."

A tear rolled down her cheek as her eyes began to glaze over. "You know...that you're going to have to re-enter that madness again...right? Would you do that...for the sake of...one silly promise?"

Naruto nodded, wiping the tear from her ice cold skin.

"Then let's hope..." she breathed out deeply "That it will be a long time before we meet again..._Hokage-sama_."

He carefully rested her body back to the ground, but he didn't move from her side until the reinforcements arrived far too late.

* * *

*Goes to the depressed people corner and cries*


	15. Of Snakes and Swords

The sun began to descend behind the trees and the sky glowed with an eerie blood red tinge.

"So they're not going to tell him until after the exams?" Kakashi nodded slowly, his eyes glazed in grief as he sat next to Naruto on the roof of his apartment watching the sun disappear below the clouds. He had seen many people die, but even now the death of a comrade was nothing short of painful. The Jounin didn't even want to imagine how Naruto felt.

"Why?" Kakashi glanced toward the blond. "Why wouldn't they tell him? He has a right to know that she's..._dead_." The last word was a sorrowful whisper that was carried away by the wind.

Kakashi hunched forwards resting his elbows on his thighs before answering. "That's what she would have wanted..." He sighed wearily "For him to get promoted to Chunin. If he knew...he wouldn't compete. We both know that."

Naruto held his head in his hands. Why did it have to end like this? The silver haired man noticed how tense the boy was and rested a comforting hand on his head, for which he got a glare, but somehow Kakashi knew it was appreciated. It worried him how little resistance the boy was putting up, he would never accept being treated like a vulnerable child.

"I'm surprised that your Team were still allowed to pass after they were carried to the Tower." Naruto mumbled, his hands still covering his face. "Shouldn't they have been disqualified or something?"

Kakashi laughed, but it sounded hollow to both of them. "Sandaime-sama hasn't told anyone yet..."

A blue eye peeked out from the shadows of his hands. "Why not?"

Kakashi shrugged his shoulders. "Nobody tells _me_ anything."

Naruto dropped his hands and shrugged Kakashi off. "Do you remember the day you made me make that promise?" he asked softly, not turning to face the masked man to see his reaction.

"I...don't..." Kakashi felt a pang of regret as Naruto turned away from him to watch the disappearing sun plunge beyond the horizon.

"It doesn't matter anyway." Naruto muttered faintly "It was only a fleeting thought."

"Why...did she say something to you?"

"She..." There was a pause full of indecision "Made me promise...to _keep_ that promise." The windows were beginning to light up in the street below, warding off the darkness. "But...I-I don't think I can."

* * *

"Way to go us!" Kensuki laughed, his hands thrown up to the sky as they walked down the main street towards their homes " We were the first in the _history_ of the Chunin Exams to make it within the first hour!" He laughed merrily as Sakura followed him silently from behind. He turned, his face suddenly serious and filled with concern.

"He'll be fine Sakura-chan...I promise." The pink haired girl nodded, biting her lip in an effort not to cry. She jumped as she felt herself being towed down the street by her hand. "I know something that will make you feel better!" Kensuki chuckled happily.

* * *

Naruto turned suddenly, causing Kakashi to naturally reach for his kunai pouch. "What's wrong?"

Naruto smiled sadly and pointed towards the two figures that were making a beeline for Ichiraku's ramen stand. Well...one was dragging the other. "Is Sasuke still with the medics?"

Kakashi nodded, closing his eyes as he did so. "I'll have to seal the mark before he reaches the preliminary tournament." The silver haired man muttered darkly. "We don't want any _accidents_."

Kakashi soon headed back inside and Naruo had excused himself, but he still hadn't gone home. He was sat inside the walls of Konoha's graveyard, surrounded by the sea of white stones that stretched as far as the eye could see. It was bitterly cold but the blond was to wrapped up in his thoughts to notice.

'_And by how more much will it grow by the time Konoha falls?_' There were no words for how he felt, all he could feel was rage and anger and...sadness. '_Can you forgive me for not being able to save you?'_

It was all _his_ fault.

But what could one miserable civilian do to change that? Naruto shook his head and carefully arranged what he knew in his head. Otogakure were preparing an attack of some sort, there was one Jounin from Oto who had faulty papers, Orochimaru was sighted near Oto, marked the Uchiha and then killed... He couldn't think of her now.

"_You know you'll have to re-enter that madness...would you do it for one silly promise?"_ His eyes lazily drifted shut as yesterday's events were replayed in his head, detail by pain staking detail. He opened his eyes slowly, awakened by the sounds of birds chirping loudly nearby and the light that shined brightly in his eyes. Naruto groaned, suddenly realizing that he had managed to fall asleep leaning against the wall.

"Sleeping beauty awakes." There was a low chuckle.

Naruto looked up and in a blink of an eye flipped to his feet with a kunai in his hand.

"_You!"_

The stranger smiled.

"So you saw through my genjutsu? Impressive as always _Kitsune-kun_."

* * *

Kakashi watched as Sakura defeated the blonde girl from Asuma's team. He would actually say he was a little...proud of her; he would have to treat Anko to some dango later, and thank Naruto for setting Sakura up with Anko to train. So he had a full team through to the Chunin Tournament? Excellent. Yet every time Kensuki brought up his aunt, he would have to look away. He wasn't sure if Sakura or Sasuke had noticed his behaviour yet, but they _would_ given enough time. He had no idea how he was supposed to go about explaining to his student the exact reason that they hadn't told him about his aunts' death.

'_Well..he has a good chance at Chunin at least...'_

On the outside he looked calm and collected, scanning the pages of the Icha Icha book, not really reading them...inside he was worried. Sure his team had gotten so far without being hurt, but what might happen in the Chunin Tournament? All of them were through...which meant there were more chances for him to lose a team member.

Gaara.

What would happen if one of his team was going to be fighting the jinchuriki? If they did, he doubted even Sasuke could manage to hold him off for long... Hayate slowly read off the names of those who were going to face each other in the upcoming tournament. Kakashi was eerily still but only one person noticed, a Jounin by the name of Maito Gai.

Kakashi Hatake froze.

Kensuki vs. Kankuro

Sakura vs. Neji

Sasuke vs. Gaara

None of this was fair! Kakashi felt his insides tighten as the names were read out, he wasn't sure if any of his Team were ready for this level of opponent yet!

* * *

"I'm still tired so I'm going home." The kunai disappeared back to where it had come from. Naruto yawned and then turned away from the man, beginning to walk away. The man followed silently behind. "So what brings you back?" Naruto asked without turning to face the stranger.

"I'm not allowed to say hello once in a while?"

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the answer but still he did not turn.

"If they know you're here, Sandaime-sama won't stop them... and we all _know_ you didn't come here to 'say hello'."

The man was silent for a second, as if contemplating the words of the young blond. "I can never get past you can I Kitsune-kun?"

Naruto stopped, looking left and right to check for any eavesdroppers before rounding on the man, who flinched back at the hate that smouldered in those blue eyes. "You know as well as I do that that's not my name anymore! It's because of _you_ with your stupid morals and ideas that both your brother and I are in this kind of mess!" Naruto breathed out, looking away for a second "You could have gotten somebody else to do it that night...it didn't have to be you, there were _others_."

The stranger bowed his head, also looking away.

"We both know...that there was only one other person apart from myself who could complete _that_ mission successfully..." Naruto bit his lip and turned away once again, this time the man didn't follow but stayed where he had stopped, yet even then Naruto still heard his whisper carried by the wind. "It was _you_...Naruto-kun."

* * *

'_Why is he here?! Here of all places?! Of all times to resurface he chooses now?!'_

Did he know about Tora? About Orochimaru? Was that why he had returned? Should he tell the Sandaime or would...

"Hey Naruto-kun!" Mitarashi Anko waved from her seat at the dango shop.

"So she's fighting a Hyuuga?" Naruto nodded as she continued to devour dango at a million mile an hour rate. "Tri-cky...So what about Kakashi?"

"Hmm?" Naruto looked towards the tokubetsu Jounin in curiosity. What was she leading up to? She chuckled evilly. "Is Kakashi teaching Sakura?"

The blond shrugged his shoulders in a reply.

"Ahh...jus' wonderin'." She smiled and then went back to her dango. Naruto gritted his teeth as he felt _his_ aura pass behind him, and a barely audible sound of:

"_Dango please!"_ Had the man from earlier followed him in here? Had he not heard him say that he would be hunted down and killed if anybody knew he was here? "-re you okay? Hey Naruto! NARUTO!"

Naruto blinked a few times before turning to the snake mistress, who was staring back in concern. All thoughts of _him_ disappeared. At least it hadn't been Orochimaru. "I heard about your friend Naruto-kun...I'm sorry to hear that."

Naruto sighed, prodding the dango on his plate with a restrained ferocity. "It happens." Was the response. He didn't miss the look of worry that passed over her face at his reaction. There was an awkward silence in which neither of them talked.

"So...you think that Sakura would mind if I...?" Naruto raised an eyebrow at the purple haired woman's flustered composure. "Ask her and Kakashi...I doubt he would mind...Sakura might try to escape though..."

Anko's embarrassed grin suddenly did a 180 degree spin and turned blood thirsty, glinting with an inner madness that was mostly for show. "She can run..." She threw the last dango stick to the sky, where it stuck into the ceiling, the last dango stick in the shape of the Leaf of Konoha. "But she can't hide!"

* * *

He tried to remember why he was running about after everybody again. No matter how hard he tried, he had no idea why he was currently trying to pick a Jounin-sensei for Kensuki. Somebody who specialized in close quarter fighting, Taijutsu or Kenjutsu. .. His first option would be Kakashi, but since the Uchiha had already called dibs...

He knew exactly who he would talk to.

The Anbu member in question suddenly felt extremely nervous, a trickle of sweat rolled its way down the back of her neck. She glanced left and right, before closing her fingers around the ninjato strapped to her back. She strained his ears but she still couldn't hear anything. There was no chakra signal, no sound, no smell...but there was a _presence_. The Anbu spun round, unsheathing the ninjato and leaping forward...

There was nothing.

She opened his eyes, not remembering exactly when she shut them, and saw a pair of feet. A pair of feet that were balancing on the blade that she held in her hands. Gulping in fear, she looked slowly upwards, not risking any fast movements in case the enemy attacked. Unremarkable black boots, not even shinobi sandals, changed into a pair of well faded jeans, then a black jacket.

"Do you greet everybody like this...?" the tone was icy and Yugao tensed up, recognizing that tone from her early days in the Black Ops "Or is it just _me_?" The stranger flipped lightly off the blade to land softly next to Yugao, beginning to dust off his clothes.

"Eh...heh..." Yugao began to stutter, re-sheathing the ninjato slowly before beginning to slowly raise her hands in defence. Naruto turned, his face completely emotionless and Yugao snapped to attention without thinking. A flicker of a smile crossed the blonds' face.

"So...what can I do for you Naruto-senpai?"  
The smile disappeared, once again the young boys' face was completely emotionless.

"When is your next mission?"

The woman shrugged, wondering where this conversation was leading to. "We don't know when our missions come in...You know that Naruto-senpai."

"Hmmm...Are you due holidays?"

She resisted the urge to crack a smile at the odd question, what was Naruto thinking behind that stone like expression? "I could ask I suppose.." Yugao mumbled "But if I may ask Naruto-senpai, I don't think you're planning a holiday for me, are you?"

Naruto grinned, but not a care free grin at all...it was a grin that promised pain. "No...How do you feel about playing Sensei for a couple of weeks?"

_Sensei?!_ Yugao felt a little shaken, he never guessed that it would lead this way "But..."

"_Relax_...You owe me your life _don't_ you?" Naruto still hadn't dropped the menacing grin. Yugao felt, in that moment, more fear than when she had come blade to blade with an S-ranked Nuke-nin. Her heart was thumping wildly in her chest and her mouth was dry. "So what do you say _Taichou?_ Willing to help an old _friend_ out?"

The purple haired woman nodded, releasing a breath she never realised he had been holding. "W-Who is it?"

"A Genin."

Yugao gritted her teeth, suddenly glad for the mask that hid her face from the boy in front of her. "A...Genin?"

Naruto nodded slowly. "You remember ...Tora-taichou?" His voice broke a little as he said her name, and the grin wavered for a second "Her nephew Kensuki..."

Yugao had never knew her family, so the name didn't ring any bells...but if that's what Naruto wanted... "For the Chunin-Exams..?

Naruto nodded, turning away from the woman. "He needs help with his Taijutsu and Kenjutsu if you feel like it...he already started training in Tora's style so it shouldn't be so hard to start training in the basic forms."

Yugao whistled in admiration for the boy. Even if he had only started to learn the style, he had some guts to try and take on an Anbu style. "If he is anything like Tora-taichou then I'll do it." She nodded fiercely. Naruto smiled, remembering the day when he had first met Yugao when she was an Anbu recruit. If he remembered rightly he had been one of the proctors in the entrance test.

'_We all knew you were looking for a challenge Yugao _Naruto turned to leave _'There was no doubt in my mind that you wouldn't._

* * *

It seemed so weird for them all to be together again. That was the predominant thought in Kakashi's mind as he watched his team bicker nearby. Sure it was only for the moment and they would all be splitting up again to train with their Senseis. He had gotten home to find a note taped to his fridge from Naruto.

_Saw Anko the other day, she wondered if she could train Sakura again..poor girl._ _Got somebody for Kensuki too. They told me they'd pick up their students up by the bridge in Training Ground 1. And I'm inviting myself over for dinner._

That was where they were now. Sasuke was doing the usual and ignoring his teammates who were midway through murdering each other yet again. Kakashi sighed and looked away.

"Kakashi-chan~."

Sakura froze and turned towards the voice slowly, edging behind the two boys as if trying to hide. "No, not again.._not the crazy lady_...anybody but _her_.."

Anko pounced on Kakashi, who managed to move just in time to let the purple haired woman sail past and land in front of the Genin. A wide grin plastered across her face and dango stick in her fist. Suddenly she turned and threw it straight at the silver haired sensei, who didn't flinch as it collided with his hitai-ate. She pouted as Kakashi turned another page.

"You're no fun Kaka-chan!"

Team 7 were stood as still as rabbits caught in front of the headlights of an oncoming truck, different thoughts running through their minds. Sasuke was thinking – _'So this is Sakura's teacher?'_ Kensuki thought – '_Hey isn't she the proctor from the second exam?'_

Sakura didn't bother to keep her thoughts to herself. "No..._Anybody_ but you!"

Anko smiled sweetly and Team 7 took an unintentional step backwards. "I _could_ convince _Ibiki_ to take on a student I suppose..."

It had the desired effect. Sakura shuddered, recalling the bear of a man from the first exams and his talk of death and torture...but then again Anko wasn't _much_ better.

"Eh..m..guh.." At this point Sakura didn't care about being articulate; she was too busy looking for escape routes...even training with _Kensuki_ was better than training with _her_! Kakashi resisted the urge to laugh at Sakura's panicked expression as Anko grabbed her student by the shoulder and began to walk away, dragging the struggling Sakura behind her like a sack of. Kensuki had to bite his tongue in an effort not to laugh. Then sobered, hoping that his sensei wouldn't be as _scary_.

"Kakashi-senpai." At this though, Kakashi looked up. Stood in front of him was Uzuki Yugao dressed as a Jounin, looking distinctively uncomfortable in the change of uniform. Not that many people would have noticed due to her dead pan expression.

"So you're my new sensei?" Yugao turned to face her new student, who looked up at her expectantly. She noted the similarities between the late Anbu captain and her nephew. They had the similar coloured hair, and those same wide eyes. She wondered briefly if Neruki had looked like that when she was younger.

"I am. It's Kensuki right?" She nodded which caused his face screwed up in suspicion.

"How did you know my name?"

"You're sensei told me." Yugao muttered, wondering when the boy would eventually shut up.

The boy grunted, and then turned back to Sasuke. "See ya later." The Uchiha made no move to acknowledge the fact that the boy had said anything.

"Well then Kensuki-kun." The Genin turned to face his new sensei, profoundly glad that she didn't seem anywhere near as crazy as the sensei that Sakura was lumped with. "Shall we get going?"

"Sure-" there was a moment of silence and she smiled at the boy who was wearing a quizzical expression on his face. He wanted to know her name.

"Uzuki, Uzuki-sensei."

* * *

"Oh? What's this then Yugao?" Hayate laughed as he saw the young Genin hide behind her body.

"Oh give over Hayate!" She grumbled, turning towards Kensuki with what she hoped was a reassuring smile . "You'll have met him before, during the preliminary?"

Kensuki nodded, peeking his head around from behind Yugao to stare at an amused looking Hayate.

"Hi there." The man chuckled, before pausing a moment to catch his breath, a flicker of pain crossing his face.

"Uh...hi?"

Yugao sighed at the awkwardness of it all before grabbing hold of Kensuki and steering him through her house towards the back door. Stepping outside it showed a modest sized training area, complete with wooden targets, trees and a pond.

"So let's see what you can do...Rumour has it that you can use the Kabushi no mai-"

"You bet I can!"

"Then show me it."

Yugao slid into the old Academy Taijutsu stance, remembering that it was in fact a Genin she was going against, not another Anbu. Hayate silently padded outside, before sitting down on the wooden steps to observe.

* * *

"You're not running fast enough Sa~ku~ra~chan!" came the sing song voice that Sakura came to hate. Sakura continued to run as one of Anko's summons chased her around the training circuit, snapping at her heels. Sakura had finished her 'warm-up' and finally collapsed next to her Sensei.

"So you're against the Hyuuga right?" If her reaction was any indication, this didn't bode well with her new student. "Well let me tell you something about the Hyuuga you might be surprised to learn." Sakura looked up, eyes suddenly focusing. "They have a blind spot!" Anko giggled, before launching into her plan she so aptly named.

'_Bring down Hyuuga Neji'_

* * *

The sun was sinking again, behind the trees. Naruto didn't move as he felt that presence ghost by him yet again. He also had dinner with Kakashi, which he had almost forgotten about, but he was sure that _he_ of all people could understand if he arrived late. "You could just come and sit next to me you know..."

The stranger stopped, suddenly realising that the game was up and that he'd been discovered, which was an odd feeling. He was very rarely discovered when he didn't want to be found.

"Look." Naruto snapped impatiently "You can either come out and talk or hide. Which will it be _Senpai?_"

The stranger winced at the bitterness that filled the young blonds' words, trying to remember if Naruto had always been so sharp. He landed softly on the branch that Naruto was sitting on, settling down next to his old student.

"If you're not Kitsune anymore, then I'm not your Senpai..." The man muttered softly, a hint of regret in his voice, but he didn't mind showing the young boy his weakness. They had been though life and death situations together. "I heard about Neruki-chan."

No reaction, but both of them knew that the other was hurting inside. Neruki had always been there, in every mission she was like the pillar of support they clung to, never wavering.

"So what have you been up to since you left?"

The man shook his head wearily from side to side. "I can't tell you that, I'm sorry."

Naruto sighed, running his hand through his hair. "So can you tell me _why_ you're _here_?"

The glance thrown into the undergrowth wasn't missed by Naruto."We have reason to believe that Orochimaru is going to attempt to take Sasuke."

Naruto snorted at the reply, at that particular moment not managing to find the words to explain what he meant. Eventually he found them. "Well done _Captain Obvious_! And the fact he has a curse seal has _nothing_ to do with it?"

The stranger bowed his head, not meeting the furious blue eyed stare that was directed in his general direction. "Look I'm not proud about my decisions Naruto-kun, but sometimes they're the only kind of decisions you can make in life."

There was a brief silence.

"_We_ have reason to believe?" Naruto narrowed his eyes "So who did you bring with you?"

"I-I didn't bring anyone!"

Naruto laughed, before gracefully jumping from the branch to land without a sound on the dirt below, noticing how quickly it had gotten dark.

"You were never any good at lying to me..." He dug his hands deep into his pockets and smirked "Itachi." With a wave, he left.

* * *

AN

Why is Itachi there? Who came with him? What does Anko's evil masterminded plan involve? Why was Hayate at Yugao's house?

The last one will be answered in Omake format...

"So are you two...like-" Kensuki wiggled his pinky finger with a satisfied smirk, watching as Hayate blushed several shades of pink and red within the span of a few seconds. Uzuki-sensei however didn't react in the slightest. Which made Kensuki pout.

Hayate tried to answer, stammering for a couple of seconds before he was elbowed, very sharply, by a steely looking Yugao. Kensuki gulped in fear as the terrible fear past through him that he was never going to get through the training alive. Yugao was silently planning his next few weeks to be absolute hell.


	16. Consequences Of Action

Kensuki

"Hai Uzuki-sensei!"  
In truth, he was actually exhausted having been trained non-stop for the past week, but he would never let on to the fact he felt more like collapsing to the ground than running yet another 10 laps around the outside of the training ground. The sun was high in the cloudless blue sky above, its heat bearing down on Kensuki mercilessly. So far all he had really done was endurance training, in the form of running laps and other such exercises. Absolutely no jutsus so far. It was beginning to annoy the usually boisterous blond.

_If he had wanted do exercises_, he would have stayed at the _Academy_.

He briefly glanced over at his purple haired sensei, who had turned to Hayate and was whispering something to him. Whatever she had said had made him angry, judging by his expression. It seemed odd to see such an expression on the face of the usually tranquil man.

Kensuki shot a heated glance in their direction before continuing to run.

"You really think he can handle our style Yugao-chan?" he asked her. The woman narrowed her eyes dangerously and Hayate carefully inched backwards in fear.  
"You don't trust my judgement?" Her tone was icy and promised everlasting torture if the answer wasn't correct. He gulped noisily.

"First he has to learn Kage-bunshin!" Hayate pointed out angrily, worried for the safety of the young boy, he might not have enough chakra to successfully complete the training for the Kenjutsu style. Suddenly wincing, he began to cough uncontrollably; his eyes jammed shut in pain. Yugao was at his side in a second, all traces of the Anbu member disappearing in an instant. Her pale hands glowed a rich green as they passed over his chest.

"It'll be fine...Yu-chan." Hayate tried to smile but it ended up as a lop-sided grimace, coughing a few times before continuing "Just give me a minute, It'll be fine." There was a brief silence as the pain began to subside, but Hayate noticed that Yugao didn't move away, instead she shuffled closer to him. He couldn't help but smile.

"You're...cute...when you're worried." He grinned, the pain finally subduing until it was just a dull ache in his chest. In response to this she punched him lightly on the arm, but her dark eyes were still worried.

"You shouldn't still be working Hayate-kun...They'd give you leave." She didn't bother to hide her desperate tone.

"I'll be fine..." He smiled, watching as Kensuki passed them by and yet again shot a seething look at Yugao before continuing past. "It's only routine patrol tonight, nothing will happen."

She nodded doubtfully, but chose not to say anything. Hayate noticed her expression and tried to think of something to take her mind off the subject.

"Kensuki's doing well."

Yugao looked up, before turning to watch the boy begin his journey back towards them. A flicker of a smile flittered over her face, and something that Hayate could only call pride.

"I think he'd be brilliant at Kenjutsu...he has almost above average reflexes from his previous Taijutsu training and a tactical mind when he applies himself to the situation."

"From what I remember he's up against the puppet master of the Sabaku sibling's right?"

Yugao nodded, her eyes brightening for a moment. She waved Kensuki over to join them, restraining the urge to laugh at the expression that the boy pulled before collapsing to the ground nearby.

"So...you had any ideas about how you're going to defeat Kankuro?" Yugao asked in a playful tone which made Hayate stare at her in curiosity. Just what was his Moonflower planning now?

"Emm..." Kensuki sighed in defeat "No?"

Yugao smiled cruelly which made both of the men in her presence shrink back a little.

"Well...how about guessing?" she asked. Kensuki frowned, but when he was met with only silence he replied.

"With a katon jutsu I suppose." It was a dejected mutter, but Yugao continued on regardless.

"And if he was resistant to katon attacks?" Kensuki looked surprised, but he knew that this conversation wasn't just for fun, that there was a purpose to it all.

"Well I would either try to stop him from moving somehow...or destroy him..."

Yugao nodded solemnly.

"I'm sure you realise now that everybody participating in the Exams has seen your fighting style and an experienced Genin like Sabaku no Kankuro will have studied your strengths and weaknesses in case he ever had to fight against you." Kensuki bit his lip in worry. "The reason your...sensei...decided to send you to me was so that we can teach you something different." She paused, waiting for a reaction from the momentarily serious bond sat in front of her.

"Something...different?"

"How about Kenjutsu?" Hayate suddenly regretted being within their vicinity as equally insane grins spread across both of their faces.

"So how about it kid?" Yugao asked softly "We can go with the conventional training, ninjutsu, genjutsu...but how about pulling moves that your enemy never knew you had?"

Kensuki grinned, eyes glinting dangerously in the mid-morning light.

"If you really want to learn the Mikazuki no mai, then you have to be committed...Kenjutsu of that level doesn't happen overnight." She waited for his answer. She wasn't disappointed with his answer.

"Do you really have to ask?"

Sakura

"Anko-seensseeiii!" Sakura whined, carefully controlling her chakra as she walked the last few steps of the book case to the floor, balancing several books in her hands as she did so. The very top of the pile was a recipe book. On how to cook seafood.

"Why do I even need to look at this stuff~!" She continued as Anko swung backwards and forwards on her chair, waiting for her pink haired student to _finally_ stop complaining. "Sasuke-kun will be missing me!"

"Look Sakura!" Anko snapped, sick of the girls' obsession with the stupid, stuck-up Uchiha survivor. "You want to impress him don't you?"  
The girl nodded mutely, frightened by her Senseis' reaction.

"Do you think he finds your constant whining and fawning impressive? Do you think that if he is ever in trouble you will be able to save him by _whining_?!" Anko was so sick of hearing 'Sasuke-kun this' and 'Sasuke-kun that' she had reached what was dubbed as her 'lose control and throw things' level. She demonstrated this by lobbing a book in Sakura's direction, suddenly extremely glad that it was in grabbing distance. "See if you listen to me, and forget all about the Uchiha then I can teach you things that really will impress him! Think about how he would feel if you defeat the Hyuuga!"  
Sakura nodded again, her mouth gaping like a fish on dry land.

The librarian took the opportunity to peek her head around from one of the aisle, raise a finger to her lips and say. "Shush children this is a quiet working area."

This really sent Anko of the wall, and into her 'Throw larger objects with more force' mode.

Several minutes later both student and Sensei were thrown out onto the street. Anko threw herself back at the door and hurled abuse at the woman before turning back to Sakura. A cheeky smile plastered to her face, she plucked the book on cooking seafood from the fold of her trench coat.

"A minor setback-" Anko was interrupted by her student mutter.

"A _minor set back_?! I'm banned from the library for _life_!"

"-but we can continue to train!"

Sakura looked up with a raised eye brow, an expression that she had already picked up from Anko in the short time they had been together. Anko felt a little bit of pride well up inside of her. Flicking through the pages, she stopped at the one she was looking for.

"Is it some kind of hidden training manual Sensei?" Sakura asked hopefully, wondering if the cover was in fact a ploy and inside were jutsu that would really impress her Sasuke-kun.

"Nope!" Anko smiled innocently "It's a recipe book."

Sakura fell to the ground in a dejected heap; she might as well withdraw from the exams while she still could be with her Sasuke-kun.

"And this-" She flicked the book to face her miserable student with a cheery smile "Is what I want you to find."

Itachi

"So that was Naruto?"

Itachi nodded slowly, flicking the rice ball around the plate with a pale finger as he rested his forehead wearily on his outstretched palm.

"He didn't look too impressed to see you."

Itachi gave his companion a withering look, resisting the urge to kick his shin as hard as he could.

"Hey! No need to give _me_ dirty looks about it!"

The elder Uchiha brother sighed, slouching even more than before.

"Just not your week is it Itachi-san?"

"Kisame, though I often find your dry humour amusing...at _this_ particular moment time it most definitely isn't." The man in question frowned and popped another deep fried shrimp into his mouth with a satisfied sigh.

"No need to be so grouchy Itachi-_chan_." Kisame grinned through a mouthful of shrimp.

Itachi growled. Kisame got the drift and shut up. For a moment anyway.

"Any word on your little brother?"

Itachi resisted the urge to throttle the blue skinned man, and instead controlled his emotions enough to reply.

"He's training with Kakashi-san."

"You gonna go watch his tournament?"

"If I have the time."

Kisame smiled, his unnaturally sharp teeth still remaining even though he had a henge in place. "Don't bother lying to me Itachi."

The stoic Uchiha chewed on the onigiri slowly, trying to ignore the man opposite him. Kisame sighed in exasperation and finished his food, leaning back in his wooden chair as he did so. Both of their thoughts straying towards the blond haired ex-shinobi from before.

"He seemed the type to snoop around." Kisame said suddenly. The weasel looked up seriously.

"He's not gonna just leave it there Itachi-san, he's gonna snoop around until he finds something that's gonna get him _killed_." Itachi stopped chewing. "He's not Anbu anymore...and no matter how much you want to deny it...he's not useful to us."

Itachi closed his eyes, refusing to meet the steely stare of the blue skinned man. Around them the cafe continued to happily buzz, filled with laughter and chattering. Neither of them heard it.

* * *

It was late evening now. There was a crisp edge to the air, but Kensuki didn't notice it as much now. His muscles burned as he repeated the same movement over and over again, still not quite accustomed to the feel of the bokken in his grip. Hayate had disappeared just as the sun was setting, he had said something about patrol duty and left. Kensuki didn't miss the look of worry that was so evident on his Sensei's face. It was clear that she worried about the man more than she let on, probably more than he even realised himself.

"Kensuki?" He turned, shaken out of his reverie by Yugao's silky voice. The purple haired woman was on her feet, turning back towards the house. "Come inside." She motioned for the boy to follow her "We're done with that for today."

Kensuki felt relieved, gratefully dropping the bokken, which clattered to the floor noisily, as he sped inside.

"Just because we're done with your katas..." Yugao muttered coldly, causing Kensuki to freeze in his tracks. "_Doesn't _mean we are finished training." Kensuki sighed, wondering what torture was in store for him. "Get showered up, we'll eat and then we can start on something else that'll be vital to your training."

The boy nodded slowly, before making his way upstairs towards the shower. When he was done, he found Yugao seated at the table, eating slowly from the bowl in front of her with a faraway look in her eyes. He didn't want to move in case he disturbed her, instead he sat down on the stair and carefully watched her from behind the railings.

"If you don't come down soon-" Her dark eyes flicked towards the staircase "Your food will get cold."

Kensuki slowly stepped into the light, his clear green eyes filled with guilt and his head bowed. It was times like these that he surprised her, when he was so quiet and serious.

"Sorry..."

"There's nothing to be sorry about Kensuki-kun." She motioned for him to sit down opposite her, so he did. "You did well today."

Kensuki looked up, a faint smile on his face, appreciative of the complement. There was an awkward silence between them as Kensuki began to eat.

"Tell me a story Sensei." Yugao did a double take, unsure if Kensuki had really just asked such a question. He sounded like a very young child. This caused her to shift uncomfortably in her chair, she never knew how to act around small children.

"What about?" She asked cautiously.

"Well you're a Jounin aren't you? You must have some cool stories!"

_'Sure I have stories, about assassinating children, poisoning fathers and murdering innocent bystanders because they saw or heard something that they shouldn't have.'_

"Well..." She stalled, not sure what she could say.

"C'mon Sensei! Please?"

There was one. Her first mission in Anbu. Where Naruto had saved her life.

"It was when I first became a Jounin." She started. Kensuki nodded, dipping his fork back into the porcelain bowl. "I was on a solo mission to retrieve a Genin team that had been intercepted by a Nuke-nin. According to their Jounin-sensei, who had managed to escape and call for reinforcements, it had been one man. The information however was wrong."

Kensuki had stopped with his fork half way to his mouth but he was far too wrapped up in the story to think about something as simple as eating.

"When I arrived at the scene, they were gone, but I managed to track them to a nearby village. Unfortunately when I arrived, I found that the Genin I had been sent to retrieve had been killed and there was no sign of the missing-nin from the report." She didn't tell him about how the Genin had been torn apart whilst they were still breathing, parts of them strewn around the dingy room in puddles of dark red liquid. "The strangest thing was, that I also found the body of their Jounin-sensei, who I had seen only days earlier."

"And then what Sensei?"

_She had panicked, bile was in her mouth and she ran_.

"I realised it was a trap, and tried to exit the building, but was stopped by several Nuke-nin. All of them were ranked at least B or above." She remembered that night too well, the utter fear that had coursed through her veins as she came to realise that there was no chance of escaping alive. "I tried to fight them off, but it was around 14 to 1."

"Eventually, as expected I was caught. Their leader decided to take execute me in order to 'discipline Konoha'."

She remembered the man, tall, pale skin yet covered in dirt. Cruel eyes, dark brown in colour. He had sneered at her, pulled at her hair, carved a kunai almost lovingly down her back until she had cried out in pain. Then he had laughed. In that moment, as she had felt that all hope was lost...

"A small child walked through the door, jumping over the dead bodies and pools of blood. It took everybody by surprise. That is until the boy got close enough to jump onto their leaders' shoulders and drive a kunai through the man's eye socket." She smiled a little "That same boy managed to massacre the remaining men in less than five minutes."

_She raised her head, eyes blank and unseeing but open. A pair of feet walking towards her. She recoiled, cowering away from the stranger, curling up in to a ball. If she shut her eyes, what she couldn't see couldn't hurt her. She repeated the mantra in her head, squeezing her eyes tighter and drawing her legs closer to her chest, ignoring the feel of fresh blood lap against her cheek. She didn't know if it was hers or if it was theirs._

_It didn't matter._

_"Uzuki Yugao?"_

_The voice was young, far gentler than the voices from before._

'But it could be a trap!_' her conscious screamed, but she risked it. Opening an eye cautiously, she blinked a few times before the figure came into focus._

_It was the young blond boy, a small, yet friendly smile on his face. His bright blue eyes so similar to the colour of the cloudless sky. He looked so innocent and childlike. Or he would have done, were it not for the dark red patches that stained his hair, clothes and skin. The kunai in his hands covered in drying blood._

_"Uzuki-san?"_ _His lips moved, but Yugao barely heard him. She was dizzy and she was tired._ _"I'm from Konoha, I've been dispatched to bring you back."_ _He held out his hand and Yugao shakily accepted._

"Amazing...who was he?"

She froze; unsure if Kensuki knew Naruto's Anbu code name...she doubted it though. "You've heard of Kitsune? The Anbu given the name of Piercing Wind?"

Kensuki nodded energetically.

"I met him once! He was super awesome and he took down this evil ninja guy that tried to kill me! It was so cool he was all like-"At this point Kensuki lowered his voice as if to imitate the ex-Anbu member " 'Your death will be painful, I won't lie to you and say it won't'! Did you know him Sensei?"

Uzuki Yugao blinked a couple of times, her brain still processing the barrage of comments that Kensuki had spouted in a matter of seconds, before she suddenly regained focus.

"I knew him a little..." She admitted cagily.

"Tell me something about him then. Please?"

There would be no harm in telling him stories; it would never reveal Naruto's identity. Yugao didn't understand why he wanted to hide it anyway, but he was formerly her superior so she would respect his wishes. "He was extremely talented at Ninjutsu, mostly Fuuton and Katon, He used several styles of Taijutsu, but preferred the one that he was taught by the Sandaime Hokage called the Suingigu Genkotsu no Saru."

"The Sandaime taught him? That's so _cool_!"

"He was also taught Kenjutsu and Bojutsu by Sandaime-sama. He was one of the most powerful and well known shinobi that this village by the time he was ten years old." She let the information sink in, uncertain of how the boy would react. Kensuki continued to look awe-struck until he asked:

"Why though?"

She paused, wondering where the question had come from.

"Why would he sacrifice his childhood so he could become a killing machine? Was he really such a... monster?"

She smiled ruefully, her eyes shutting for a moment. "He was never a monster...at least not in my eyes. He often spoke of his self-sacrifice, to destroy his childhood so he could protect others; he wanted to be the Hokage because of that. I wouldn't call somebody like that a monster."

Kensuki looked confused. "So what happened? Why did he suddenly decide to leave?" he asked Yugao curiously.

"Well...I don't know." She answered truthfully, before sliding her chair backwards and leaving the room. _'I hope it wasn't a mistake to tell him...'_

* * *

Sakura collapsed into her room, not even bothering to change into her night clothes. Her new sensei was _infuriating_!

First they had spent the morning reading a recipe on Fugu, then they had spent most of the afternoon at a Dango restaurant where Anko had eaten large amounts of Dango and challenged Sakura to a Dango stick throwing contest. _Which her Sensei naturally won_. Then the crazy woman had decided to train her in Genjutsu, which seemed pretty pointless, but nonetheless Anko had insisted that it was all part of the 'plan'. A plan which seemed to change every few seconds to suit her sensei's the very end of the day, when Sakura was close to clawing the woman's' eyes out, she had the nerve to ask her to go shopping for her. The list rested on her bedside cabinet.

_Anko's Shopping List!_

_Bread x1_

_Sealing Paper x3 rolls_

_Eggs x6_

_Milk x1_

_Set of hollow senbon x1_

_Fugu x1_

_Dango x208_

_Pot of extremely potent pepper x1_

_Those awesome biscuits with the panda's on x11_

As Sakura drifted off to sleep, the only thing that crossed her mind was:

_'Why Panda's?'_

* * *

'_It was such a simple jutsu...why didn't I see it all before?'_ Naruto silently ghosted across the rooftops, his silhouette glowing faintly from the light of the street lamps below, returning home after training for most of the day. There was an air of accomplishment about him. _'If only I could have shown you _that_ jutsu Neruki-chan..."_ It was an exhilarating feeling, to have the wind rush against your face and snag at your hair and clothing, when there was nobody in sight. Unfortunately he could still sense the thousand of chakra signals that moved around him. There were two that bothered him most. One was painfully similar to his own, a mixture of human and demonic chakra. The other was also familiar, yet it was entirely human, he could sense no abnormalities in it. He stopped, landing without a sound on the rooftop. The demonic chakra increased, and Naruto watched as a tidal waved of sand poured across the roof opposite. Where were the patrols? Did they not sense this disturbance? Naruto sped quickly into the concealing shadows. There was the keen smell of fresh blood in the air now.

"-that a Jinchuuriki's true power then?"

That voice. He had heard it before. Naruto side stepped slowly towards the origin of the voices, not making a noise. He located them. He could only see one of the two people. A man with a white bandage draped around his head and two red tattoos, perhaps clan marks. The glint from the full moon revealed a Suna hitai-ate. The uniform he wore clearly stated he was a Jounin. The other figure, with the familiar voice, was stood behind the Suna-nin where Naruto couldn't see him.

"Y-you don't mind?" The Suna-nin sounded shocked. "He was an Oto-nin after all..."

The hidden man chuckled, finding the actions of the Sand shinobi amusing. "He served his purpose." the first voice stated dryly.

So did this Suna shinobi somehow have a connection to both Oto and the influx of chakra? Of course! How did he not see it before? _'That chakra was the Ichibi jinchuuriki, he must have attacked one of the Oto-nin...but why?'_

"- the power of Uchiha Sasuke." The Suna-nin continued, leaving Naruto to guess the beginning of the sentence. Naruto cursed. Somehow that stuck up idiot was involved in this mess? There was a silence and Naruto stayed very still but relaxed into the wall, masking his chakra until even he could barely feel its flow. This would be the time that they would search for any eavesdroppers. Naruto silently prayed that they wouldn't sense Hayate. It was precisely then that the stupid Tokubetsu Jounin decided to _move_. Naruto winced. Unless he did something Gekko Hayate would be a _very_ dead Tokubetsu Jounin.

"You revealed yourself to them? So they know you're Orochimaru's right hand man?"

Fire writhed inside Naruto's soul. Kabuto. The snake bastard's assistant. That was who was talking to the Suna shinobi. Blood pumped in his ears, drowning out all noise under the roar. He gritted his teeth, preparing to rush out and kill that man. Kill him to get revenge. Revenge on the Hebi Sannin. To kill.

"It was a plan that was set out planned by Otogakure." Naruto's ears pricked up, his hands somehow finding their way to the hilt of a kunai that he never knew he had.

"The Sand will not make a move until the last moment." The Suna shinobi whispered "This is the will of Kazekage-Sama."

Obviously a high ranking Jounin, if he knew the will of the Kazekage. Either that or the tattooed man was bluffing. Kabuto chuckled, and the bloodlust returned full force. Naruto forced his eyes shut, having to press his hands tight around the kunai so he didn't drop it in his anger.

"This is your mission." The Med-nin said, his amusement obvious "Be sure to tell them."

There was no noise, but the Sand ninja nodded in return. "Alright I'll be off then."

Kabuto made his move to leave, but stopped, turning to face the shadows where Naruto lurked. "One more thing...I'll take care of our _loose end_."

Naruto sensed Hayate tense, ready to flee if the situation arose. But was it him or was it Hayate that they were talking about?

"No wait..." The Suna shinobi stopped the silver haired traitor "I'll take care of that _one little rat._"

Hayate sped off, followed closely by the Suna-nin. Naruto was torn between saving a Tokubetsu Jounin and a friend, or shadowing the silver haired man back to his _master_.

_'I'm not prepared to meet Orochimaru now...He deserves much more pain when his end finally arrives than I have the power to do now. Yugao would never forgive me...I could never forgive myself.'_

"Konoha Ryu: Mikazuki no Mai!"

Two Kage Bunshins attempted to distract the Suna shinobi, whilst the real Hayate was slowly descending from above, blade outstretched and ready to attack. Hayate never expected the was a small pulse of chakra, and his sword barely connected. When he tried to remove the blade to strike again, it was stuck, the chakra holding it firmly in place. A wave of terror swept through the young man.

"Impressive." Hayate looked up, panic evident on his face "Being able to master the Mikazuki no mai at such a young age." The enemy shinobi smirked.

"But a real sword is so easy to stop, but no a sword made of wind. Fuuton: Kaze no Yaiba!"

A wind blade, bursting full of chakra, created itself within the shinobi's palm. Hayate saw his entire life flash in front of his eyes. He would never see Yugao again.

"Die!"

The sword of wind was slowly making its way towards him. Whistling, howling ripping. Screaming out for his murder. It was then that something smashed him out of the way. Colliding with his body heavily. His breath was forced out of his lungs as he flew through the air.

"_Move_ you godforsaken idiot!" a voice yelled.

He crashed out of the way, finally skidding to a stop close to the edge of the building. He was on his feet in a second. He silently thanked his unknown saviour, for a moment he had thought it was Yugao in her Anbu uniform, but the voice he had heard was distinctly masculine, and the figure was far too short. Said figure turned towards him angrily.

"Quickly! Go inform Hokage-sama!" the Anbu member yelled in annoyance, grateful when Hayate did as he was told. The Suna-nin looked torn, his face completely terrified at the thought of Hokage discovering Suna and Oto's secret alliance.

"Well you're just a kid." The Suna-nin concentrated his chakra "Under a henge"

The blast of chakra disrupted the hastily placed henge, revealing a rather furious blond. Naruto's eyes were icy.

"You will die before you will ever touch this village." Naruto stated coldly. The Suna-nin stopped, looking both frightened and furious. The wind blade in his hands thrashing frantically

"Y-you!" Naruto stopped, continuing to stare at the man, but not acting. Surprised by the man's reaction. "You killed my Aniki! You killed my brother!"

Naruto laughed softly. The Suna-nin noticed the bitter edge laced with regret. "I've killed many people...I don't remember the faces."

"His name was Yarimaki!"

Now he remembered. One of his most famous missions within the Black Ops. To assassinate the captain of Sunagakure's Anbu forces. A SS-ranked mission. This mans' brother. Did this man not know that his brothers' death was ordered by the Kazekage himself? Naruto didn't think so.

"So he's dead. Big deal." Naruto stated bitterly, a hint of boredom in his steely voice which looked odd coming from a child so young.

The Suna-nin gritted his teeth, his muscles tensing in preparation to attack. "Why you-! You'll be glad to know that we plan on destroying your _precious_ village as you're all preoccupied with these petty Exams."

Naruto's smile was cold. Sunagakure and _Otogakure_ were planning to _invade_? _That's_ what Oto was up to? "Hate me as much as you like _Baki_...it won't make any difference to me at _all_."

Baki began to shake in anger, his face pasty white and eyes burning in utter rage. His muscles were screaming at him to lunge towards the boy that stood in front of him.

"Are you a coward then?" Naruto spat at the Suna-nin's feet. "Did you know that at the very end your 'Honourable' and 'Powerful' big brother was squealing like the pig he was?"

That was the final straw. Baki lunged forwards, screaming as he did so. Naruto smiled. Blood splattered across the rooftop, the moon adding a sinister sheen to the dark liquid as it dribbled down towards the gutters. The smile was dropped.

"Please." The blonde whispered, laying the body carefully to the floor "Don't forgive me for what I did to you." He shut the man's eyes. Naruto turned slowly, suddenly sensing the presence behind him. Whoever it was, they were channelling a vast amount of chakra. His blood ran cold in his veins.

This.

Was.

Not.

Good.

The Anbu squad captain stepped forward. The three squad members stood a little ways off, having just arrived to the scene.

"Uzumaki Naruto?"

There were only three options. He could go with them, he could fight them or he could run away. Naruto sighed, resigning himself to his fate.

"Yes, I'm Uzumaki Naruto."

The Anbu looked indecisive for a moment, eyes obviously flicking between the dead body and the young boy covered in the blood of the corpse. A clean cute between the ribs with a kunai proved the boy's skill. Only professionals, practised in the way of assassination, could ever hope to pull of such a difficult kill. It required accuracy as a reflex; most people opted to kill their target by stabbing them under the ribcage. Not through it.

"Uzumaki Naruto, under Law #270 created by the Nidaime Hokage, Tobirama Senju, you are hereby under arrest for the murder of Nohara Baki, Jounin of Sunagakure."

* * *

Dun duhn DUUUH! :O

Now tell me how many of you were expecting _that_?


	17. These Four Walls

I have recently found out I repel technology... this was made obvious by the loss of my phone and my computer within the space of ten minutes. This is _very_ bad news because I decided to be clever and write a few chapters ahead, all in all it totalled 82 pages worth of writing, and I have lost _it all_

* * *

1st day -19 days to the Chunin Exams and the Invasion

Well wasn't this just _perfect_!

He lay out on his back, ignoring the way the stone pressed against his spine, staring up at the stark, grey ceiling above him, eyes following the small patterns that had been engraved in the cement by previous individuals. If he squinted one of them looked like a teddy bear. There was another man across from him, crouching against the closest wall, his knees drawn up close to his face, arms resting casually by his sides. As far as Naruto was aware, the man had barely moved from that position. There were a few other people, at the other end of the cell, but the blond boy hadn't moved from his spot since he had arrived.

'_I wonder if this would have turned out better if I had followed Kabuto...'_

He already knew the answer to that.

He rolled over onto his side, facing away from his fellow inmates to stare at the wall, idly tracing the concrete with a single fingertip. He knew he could break through it if he wanted to, in fact he wouldn't even be breathing any faster than he was now, but why bother? If he did that then he knew he was asking for more trouble. Of course he knew what would happen. Civilians that killed allied ninjas were always executed. That was law #270. He wondered if he wanted to die. He thought long and hard. Naruto decided he didn't want to die in the slightest. He was imprisoned because he removed an enemy?

It was infuriatingly stupid, but he understood. The future of Konoha rested in the balance. In official terms a civilian had just killed an ally, apparently without provocation. The Hokage couldn't admit that Hayate had ever been there, otherwise it would let Otogakure and Sunagakure know that their Invasion plans had been discovered. Hayate would be the _only_ one who could prove that Naruto had only killed the man in self defence, but he wasn't allowed to say a word to anyone.

He had asked to see the Hokage but the Anbu had just laughed. He rolled onto his back, eyes closing. It would be at least two hours until breakfast was doled out, there would be enough time to grab a little sleep.

"Hey blondie!" A sapphire blue eye was warily cracked open. The jail attendant grinned, before gesturing to a bowl he held in his hands. "Breakfast. You hungry boy?"

The attendant watched as the young boy, probably no older than his own son, sluggishly got to his feet and tottered over to the bars, reaching out for the proffered bowl gratefully. "I'm sure your case will be sorted soon kid, so you can go home."

The blue eyes widened in fear and the attendant watched the boy begin to shake. The man wasn't fazed; kids were always frightened when it came down to being locked away. It was usually for petty things like vandalism or theft. Somehow he couldn't imagine this boy could commit an act of crime and his curiosity got the better of him. "So what are you in for kid?"

The spoon was shakily raised to pale lips and the contents deposited inside his mouth.

"I...I...don't know...I...want to go...home."

The attendant felt pity well up inside his chest and even though he it was against the rules, reached through the bars and patted the young boy reassuringly on the back. He would have to find out when this kid was going home. "Hey what's your name?"

'_Bingo, stage 1 complete.' _Naruto thought. '_Eventually this will get to the higher ups...'_

"U-Uzumaki Naruto..."

There wasn't even a hint of recognition in the depths of the man's eyes and Naruto relaxed, watching the man wave goodbye and disappear down the corridor.

"Hey you!" Naruto masked his irritability behind his childish facade, and turned to face a burly man who was attempting to look threatening. If it had been under different circumstances, Naruto would have been laughing by now. His blonde hair was cropped close to his head, his beady dark eyes set deep in his skull. An ugly, red scar ran from the bridge of his nose down to the bottom of his right cheek. His clothes were rugged and torn. Naruto thought he had seen the man before, there was something about him that was definitely familiar.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?"

"Um...Hello?"

The man laughed deeply, finding the brats' obvious timidity amusing. It would almost be _too_ easy. "I see you're new around these parts so we'll let you on a little bit of info." The man slapped his chest "I'm the _boss_ around these parts and what I say _goes_."

Naruto squeaked in surprise, bringing a wide grin to the man's face. "Uh...Yessir."

"Good lad, because you don't want to get on my bad side." Naruto noticed that the teeth that still remained in the man's mouth were like blackened rocks. "I used to be a _shinobi_."

'_A Genin at most, you most likely failed the Chunin Exams and were ridiculed by your team mates, you attempted to exact your revenge but failed, you were stripped of your meagre rank and let loose into the world. Since you had known nothing but the way of a ninja you turned to a life of petty crime, yet in the end it was not enough. You killed somebody, a young man or woman who was caught unaware, and took their money. You got away. Full of yourself you attempted murder again but were caught.'_

A meaty hand wrapped around his shoulder and drew him close. He tried not to recoil as his humid breath hit his exposed skin. "You'll do fine kid." He laughed, watching as the child under his arm shuffled uncomfortably "But there's a price to pay for my _protection _from these other guys."

Naruto resisted raising an eyebrow as he looked over the assorted faces. A range of heights, ages and skin tones looked back at him. None of them looked overly healthy or fit. He could have taken them all out with just Taijutsu if the need arose.

"Uh, yeah sure...but what's the price?" What exactly was the man expecting him to pay? He was genuinely curious, there was no way it could be anything illicit, there were Prison Officers stationed at each end of the corridor and they patrolled every four minutes exactly.

There was also an old man with long flowing silver hair, who Naruto guessed was in charge. He thought it the man might be a Hyuuga. He had the air of a retired Shinobi, but he was in a wheelchair, one of his legs missing from the knee. Naruto imagine it would have been a huge blow for a Hyuuga to lose his mobility. It must have been during the Third Great Shinobi war judging by his aged appearance.

"The price? Half of your food, every day, every meal time." Food? A quick glance showed that the man was definitely not undernourished. So it was just greed. Perhaps the others were so unhealthy because of the 'protection fee' the man was exerting.

"Um...yeah sure." He handed the bowl over to the man without resisting.

"Good lad."

* * *

3rd Day – 17 days to the Chunin Exams and the Invasion

"Any leads on Naruto-kun?"

"The Hokage is pretty tight lipped about this affair, I spent the whole day looking in on him and the matter wasn't even discussed."

Itachi sighed, resting his forehead in his hands wearily. His dark eyes shut. Kisame frowned but chose not comment. He couldn't understand how Itachi could be so emotionally attached to a useless brat. "So he's just disappeared?"

Kisame nodded slowly. "Not a trace, last time we could place him was when he left his house in the afternoon three days ago."

Itachi stood to his feet, twitching the curtains aside in order to peer out into the bustling street, before he moved into a different room, one that had been dubbed as their temporary office. It was strewn with several scrolls, paper, a few pens and books. Itachi rifled through the papers.

"There was an issue yesterday." Not a question... but a statement."An influx of chakra, a suspicious amount of Anbu and a multilayered Genjutsu." Kisame muttered, before selecting the right report from the stack and handing it to the dark haired teenager. "And this happened the night Naruto-kun disappeared..."

"Look Itachi-san." Kisame rounded on the younger Uchiha, his eyes serious and determined "I'm not sure what importance the Jinchuriki has to you, but that's not what's important at the moment! The Hokage asked us to-!"

Itachi stood up, flinging the paper to the floor in an uncharacteristic fury, his eyes bleeding into the red of the sharingan. "I Don't Care About _That_ Right Now Kisame." He left the room in a silent rage. The slam that followed signalled that the teenager had left through the front door.

The blue skinned man shook his head before setting the paper on top of a haphazardly balanced pile of reports. When Kisame had first met Itachi, he had found him to be stoic and serious, betraying little emotion on his face. Then, just a few weeks ago, after almost seven years of working together, Kisame had discovered that his partner was in fact a spy for Konoha on an extended, undercover mission to recover information on Akatsuki. They had a brief fight that Itachi had won, despite his illness. Kisame had then told Itachi the truth, that he couldn't care less about Akatsuki. He'd done it to spite the former Mizukage.

So after another brief skirmish Itachi had allowed Kisame to accompany him back to Konoha. The Hokage had been less than pleased but what was he to do? He was the one that had given the order to exterminate the Uchiha Clan. He _owed_ the young man. It was then that Kisame had started to see the true Itachi that was hidden under the composed mask. He cared what happened to his younger brother, his old friends and comrades in arms... He had heard a few stories about the Jinchurki child. A trained ninja, an Anbu elite, and an almost-Hokage by the tender age of ten. A ridiculous age if Kisame had any say in it. The Sandaime clearly no longer wanted his title...

'_At least it's better than Kirigakure was...'_

Giving the disorganized room a last once over he set off to go and find his colleague turned friend.

* * *

7th Day – 13 days to the Chunin Exams and the Invasion

"Hey Senpai!" Kakashi turned in surprise, expecting to see Naruto but was instead greeted by a much older man, his plain brown hair framing a plain face. There was only one person who could be a plain as this.

"Yo Tenzou!" Kakashi waved happily "I haven't seen you in a while."

Tenzou nodded but stayed silent, he looked uncomfortable. "Is...There something wrong Tenzou?"

There was an awkward silence in which neither males talked, the air was filled with tension as Kakashi scrutinized the younger man's face. Looking for a sign to show that the man was in fact bothered by something.

"It's work. Classified."

'_You would kill me if you found out Senpai. Naruto's in custody and Hokage-sama is doing absolutely nothing, just staring at his death warrant, pen poised to sign! Information we've received from top secret sources say that Otogakure may be planning an attack in the near future! Why can't you mind read Senpai?!"_

Kakashi smiled under his mask before resting his hand on Tenzou's shoulder. "Okay Tenzou-kun, we should definitely meet up again soon." The copy ninja moved to leave, but paused, a frown suddenly crossing his face. "And if you see Naruto-kun, could you tell him I'm looking for him?"

Tenzou nodded solemnly, his heart sinking to the bottom of his ribcage in despair. He waved a forlorn good bye to his Senpai as the enigmatic Jounin disappeared around the corner, smut book in hand. All the information that he had been given was that Naruto was to be sentenced after murdering a shinobi from an Allied Hidden Village. What were the repercussions going to be? Death usually was the answer to it all, as proved by Hizashi Hyuuga and the Kumogakure-nin.

* * *

16th day – 4 days to the Chunin Exams and the Invasion

'_Stage Three of my plan – completed_. _It can't be too long now..._'

"Hey Kid!"

Naruto scampered over to the man.

"I've decided I like you so I'm going to tell you a story..."

"About what?"

"When I used to be in Anbu."

'_Bullshit.' _Naruto sang silently.

"Oh wow that's so cool!" Naruto yelled, drawing annoyed glances from the other inmates. He at least had the good grace to look sheepish though. The 'Boss' smiled.

"I'm sure you've heard of an Anbu called Kitsune right?"

Naruto's smile froze over. He just _had to be joking?_ Did the _Hokage purposely_ set this up?! "Yeah...my parents used to tell me these cool stories about one of the most elite member of the Black Ops!" Naruto died a little on the inside. He definitely would not miss this _persona_ when it finally came to ditching it.

"Well..." The man looked warily from side to side, pretending to look for eavesdroppers, but it was all for show. It was clear that all the men here were discreetly listening in on the supposed 'private' conversation. "I'm Kitsune." There was no reaction from the boy at all. It was like he had been suspended in time, he didn't move, he didn't blink, and he didn't even _breathe_. The self proclaimed Anbu wondered if the kid was just having a hard time adjusting to being in the same vicinity with somebody who obviously was swimming in awesomeness.

"Hehehe..." The man blinked. Watching the young boy twitch a few times, the previous smile suddenly appearing to be far more sinister that it had originally seemed be. "Why is life always like this?" Naruto whispered with his eyes half lidded. "Why is it _always me?_"

"Hey kid! Are you okay?" The man asked, unsettled by the personality change. Naruto's blue eyes fixed to his dark ones and the man recoiled. They were completely lifeless.

"Out of all of them...Inu, Keii, Tora, Yama-..." The blond boy whispered, as if to himself. "Why is it ALWAYS ME?!"

"Hey ki-"

"The name's Uzumaki...Uzumaki Naruto. Not _Kid_." The grin was replaced by an emotionless mask. Blue eyes burning like fire. The man barely had time to react as the blond boy flew at him.

* * *

Yanagi watched the dark green leaves at the bottom of the cup. He had been in charge of the civilian imprisonment facility for over 12 years now, after he was crippled by his own student during the Great War and could no longer pursue the career of a shinobi. He felt it was a shame since he was a Jounin; he had been quite an _accomplished_ one at that. As a branch member of the Hyuuga family he was never expected to reach that far. After his student had turned rogue he had slaughtered the other boy in his Chunin team and disappeared. The kunoichi of his team had been the one to kill the traitor, but she had never been the same afterwards. The word on the grapevine was that she had died, and it was a sombre thought. Hyuuga Yanagi had always thought that he would be the first one to pass on to the afterlife in his team, now it appeared he would be the last. He was no longer young, now reaching into late fifties; his body was finally giving in. He speculated that he wouldn't last much longer.

"Si-Sir!"

One of the younger attendants burst into the Hyuuga's office in a panic "Uzumaki-kun is attacking Kurosawa-san!"

Uzumaki Naruto? As in..._Uzumaki Naruto_?! As in the _elite_ member that had disappeared off the scene for the past few years? What an earth had possessed him to come to a _civilian_ jail of all places? In order to exact revenge against Kurosawa? "Wheel me to him!"

When they arrived a young boy was casually sat on top of a large pile of twitching, groaning bodies, inspecting his fingernails.

"Uzumaki-san?"

Naruto looked up to see the pale eyed Hyuuga on the opposite side of the bars, who didn't waver once as the young child hopped off the pile of bodies and sauntered up to the iron bars. "That's me."

Not a hint in his voice to betray any emotion other than genuine amusement. "Any reason there's a layered Genjutsu around this cell?"

Naruto pouted childishly but his blue eyes betrayed him. He looked...satisfied? "So I was right, you you were a ninja?" He asked in curiosity, fingers absentmindedly twitching as the genjutsu layers shimmered and disappeared. Yanagi had his turn to look amused, though he had to admit, he was a little confused.

"Was all of this..." He surveyed the cell, noticing the inmates were all merely under a forced sleep jutsu favoured by the Hunter-nins "just an elaborate plan to speak to me?"

Naruto smiled widely, but it didn't reach those dead eyes. "Of course it was...I would never hurt them...I just needed to talk to you about something."

"And what would that thing be?" Yanagi was genuinely intrigued by the lavish plan that the boy had set up in order to talk to him.

"I made a promise to somebody who was very dear to me...A promise that I can't keep if I'm stuck in here." Yanagi nodded for the boy to continue "I want to know when the Chunin Exams are going to be held."

"Why?" It wasn't a request he had been expecting.

"Curiosity. Humour me."

"Four days." Yanagi replied, thoroughly curious about the blonds' behaviour. Naruto returned to his bench and laid back against it, staring at the ceiling in feigned interest. Yanagi took it as a signal that their conversation was terminated, but there was something he wanted to know before he left to file his report on the incident.

"Who was it?"

Who had this infamous apparently ex-Konoha nin made a promise with? A promise so strong that even when he was imprisoned he still felt the need to uphold? Bored sapphire blue eyes met inquisitive pale lavender ones. A tense moment passed and Yanagi turned his wheelchair around with a disheartened sigh. Just as he was leaving through the door he heard the boy murmur.

"Hi...Hikuro Neruki."

'_Her?' _Yanagi shook his head. _'Even after death...'_

* * *

19th day – The day before the Chunin Exams and the Invasion

"So tomorrow?" The man nodded his head slowly, his dark eyes not leaving the paper he was scanning.

"They won't be expecting it."

"Gaara...remember you have to wait until tomorrow!" Temari warned, as the saw the madness that filled her younger brother's eyes. The redhead shot a hate filled look at his elder sister and she quickly backed down. '_Tomorrow we will bathe in blood mother_.' The Ichibi chuckled in glee, his thought focusing on one thing, and one thing only.

Mindless Destruction.

"Are the preventative plans in place?" the Hokage asked, his withered fingers interlocked as he leant on his desk.

"Hai Hokage-sama! We have the finest Anbu on guard in the Kage viewing box for the protection of Kazekage-sama and yourself!" Usagi, head of the Hokage's Anbu guard after Uchiha Itachi had resigned, chirped quickly.

The Hokage dismissed him, his tired eyes turning to the paper that seemed to haunt his dreams. The title of that certain document? Death warrant, handed in by the Kazekage himself. For Uzumaki Naruto. He had planned to let the young boy out of the cell that very day, but with a death warrant from a Kage... The Sandaime wasn't sure if he could save Naruto now...

"You know you could make solitary confinement much more enjoyable if you spruced this up a bit? Sunshines and rainbows and puppies..." Yanagi grinned as he leant against the large, reinforced metal door. The room behind it containing one of the most lethal assassins that Konoha had ever produced.

"I'm not sure if you really understand the concept of 'prison' Naruto-san..."

"I've been in plenty before now." He heard Naruto mutter darkly. Yanagi wasn't sure if he was supposed to have heard the last comment the blond boy made.

"Kurosawa...he was captured by Anbu correct?"

Yanagi was surprised at the seemingly random comment. "That is correct Naruto-san."

There was a short, bitter laugh. "I think I gave him that scar." There was a long silence that could not be called, under any circumstances, comfortable. Both were left to contemplate their own vastly different thoughts. Naruto was the one to break the tense silence.

"Hyuuga-san?"

"Hmm?"

"Tomorrow is the Chunin Exams right?"

There was a pause.

"Yes."

Naruto was silent for a long time after that, and after a few gentle calls from Yanagi that bore no reply, the dark haired Hyuuga left. Naruto had hoped that he would be released before now. He hadn't expected the Hokage to just to abandon him like that. He had a promise to keep to Neruki! What if _this_ was _it_? He _had_ killed somebody after all, so for all he knew he could be spending the next 20 years in this place. Or facing death.

It wasn't a comforting thought. Not in the slightest.

The stands began to slowly fill up, buzzing in excitement. It had been at least three years since the Chunin Exams had been held in Konoha. Sakura grinned as she saw Kensuki, giving him a wave as the boy grinned back. They didn't show how nervous they really were. She looked around, suddenly feeling the worried when she didn't see Sasuke.

Up in the Kage box, the Hokage was conversing quietly with one of the Anbu. "Have you not found Sasuke-kun yet?" The Anbu shook his head in the negative and the Hokage sighed, turning to face the entrance as he noticed the arrival of the Kazekage. "Ahh Kazegake-dono how nice to see you."

'_Something's not right here'_ The Hokage realized with a jolt _'Not right at all_...'

The Kazekage sat down on the chair next to Sarutobi, his blue trimmed ceremonial robes drifting slowly to rest around him. "It is also nice to see you Hokage-dono." The Kazekage said softly "I hope that these peace talks go exactly as planned."

They waited in a tension filled silence, waiting for the crowd to eventually find their seats and settle down. Once they had done Sarutobi Hiruzen stood quickly and walked over to the barrier, addressing the crowd. "Welcome one and all to the Konoha Chunin Exam!" His voice boomed across the stadium, causing many people to fall silent. The 'Kazekage' smiled viciously but it was hidden from the world by his white veil.

The roar from the excited crowd muffled out his dark chuckle.

* * *

Mwahaha...ahem


	18. Then The Rain Came Down

Erm, Hi? Please don't kill me! There are reasons I promise!

* * *

Genma casually glanced left to right, carefully watching the bustling crowds for any possible signs of hostility. Hayate stood next to him, also on guard, but his usual sword was not in sight. Hayate had grinned and claimed to have lost it somewhere when he had been patrolling a few weeks ago. Genma knew better, Hayate would sooner loose his _head_ than his precious sword, a present from his beautiful girlfriend Uzuki Yugao (not that either would admit to it, but everyone was painfully aware of their situation) almost four years ago. However the pale man had refused to answer anything more, Genma knew better than to pry. It might be classified information so instead he watched in disinterest as the stadium began to fill up, the unfamiliar chattering putting him on edge.

It was _extremely_ rare that there would ever be more than one proctor at the final of the Chunin Exam between Allied Nations, but the Hokage had lied between his teeth to the other hidden villages by saying this year's contestants were far more powerful than the previous years. Of course it was a lie. It was in fact due to the suspicion of a large scale attack from Otogakure. No doubt that by now there was rumours running amok within the ninja ranks of the visiting hidden villages. That's what they were _there_ for, no longer interested in the matches that were to play out later that day.

That aside, it had still been a strange exam, the strangest that Genma had ever been to. As always the hosting village had the most entries, but Iwa had only sent two teams and neither of them had gotten into the final. Kumo and Kusa had only sent one each and they had not passed the _Second_ Exam. Now only their emissaries remained. It was down to a fight between Konoha and Suna. The barely disguised tension was obvious. Genma wouldn't have found it surprising if the Invasion didn't start right that second, before the Exams had even begun.

* * *

Tomohisa towered over the young couple, his ice blue eyes menacingly bright, haloed by the rising sun, turning his platinum blonde hair to a snow-like white.

"I _believe_ you're in my _seat_."

The foolish young man rose to his feet in fury, not even reaching Tomohisa's shoulders, threatening him with a raised fist. His girlfriend...or wife, the man didn't care which of the two she was, cowered behind in fright, tugging at the boy's trouser leg in a pitiful effort to get him to move away. "Now look here _buddy_!"

Tomohisa didn't scowl, his face did not even move in any way, but those cold blue eyes glinted and some primordial instinct within the rash young man kicked in. This was the kind of man that could chew you up and spit you out without a second thought. This was the kind of man who knew the effect he had on the people around him and didn't _care_. Tomohisa had put it to good use during the Third Great Shinobi War. _'I can't believe we lost to those pathetic creatures.'_

"H-Hey are you even listening to me?" A sign of weakness. His voice wavering with nervousness. With a quick swipe to the face, the pale Iwagakure-nin knocked the younger man stumbling backwards to land awkwardly at the feet of his plain looking girlfriend. Two passing Konoha shinobi stopped. Maybe of Chunin rank at most, easy to take out if it got down to a fist fight. "Is there are problem here?"

One icy stare was all it took for the brash man to disappear into the growing crowd, leaving his desperate, wild-eyed girlfriend to fend for herself. The two shinobi shared a look, before continuing to find better seats.

* * *

"Hyuuga Neji and Haruno Sakura."

The pink haired girl looked startled for a moment, before quickly regaining her composure and grinning nervously. Hayate and Genma shuddered, was _she_ the new student that Anko had been bragging about for the past few weeks? Neji scowled. He was displeased at the fact he had to fight yet another weak _girl_; he wanted to show the Hokage and the Hyuuga Clan Head how strong _he truly was_. There was no way he could showcase his skills against someone so obviously scrawny and_ feeble._

"You two must stay here, everybody else please go to the waiting room."

Hayate calmly escorted the uneasy group of young Genin to the stairs. Kensuki waved goodbye to his only female team mate, wishing her the best of luck, before he speedily disappeared with the other Genin to the waiting room. Genma watched as the Hyuuga boy settled back into the Hyuuga's Jyuken stance and was surprised when he turned to Anko's project to find the girl hadn't moved a single muscle. Was it due to fear? Nerves? Or a crazy-ass tactics that the snake-wielding kunoichi usually employed herself?

_'Apparently she has pretty amazing chakra control, but from what I can see that's only due to her pitiful chakra reserves...pitted against a Hyuuga who has the ability to close her chakra points...'_ Hayate shrugged. It would be an interesting fight to say the least. Though there was a clear winner already... It was not based on points, or winning, it was the strategy and planning, hell on his first try at the Chunin exams he had been a rookie himself, with only six months under his belt. and he had somehow managed to be elevated to Chunin rank.

"Both participants ready?" Genma asked, absentmindedly twirling the senbon in between his strikingly white teeth. Hayate blinked a few times, chiding himself silently for letting his mind wonder so far away from the task at hand. The two Genin nodded. The girl a little more hesitantly that the Hyuuga 'prodigy'. Genma hoped that she didn't die, too much effort to clean the arena floor in preparation for the upcoming matches.

"Start!"

The proctors moved out of the way, neither of them knowing what to expect from the upcoming fight.

"You should give up." Neji muttered bitterly "It is not your fate to fight me."

Sakura was utterly terrified; she knew that the boy who stood in front of her would not cushion his blows. She hoped her Sensei's plan would work. Neji saw her hesitate and took it as a sign of weakness. "Forfeit this exam or you _will_ get hurt."

There was no movement from either of the participants and the crowd were beginning to become restless in their seats. Unseen to the two children, a pale haired, pale eyed man silently sneered at their stupidity.

Sakura felt a little hope spring alive inside herself though she was still beyond nervous as the risk of death was not small. However Neji had already under estimated her for he had yet to activate his Byakugan, the first part of her elaborate plan was put into place.

"Kage bunshin no jutsu!" She formed a hand seal and several clones appeared in an explosion of thick, white smoke. The other participants looked shocked, there was no way such a weak girl like her could pull off a _Jounin_ level jutsu!

Several of the more experienced ninja in the audience smirked at the clever ploy.

Neji quickly activated his clans' bloodline limit, the dojutsu known as the Byakugan. Veins protruded from his alabaster skin, distorting those violet tinted, yet emotionless eyes. Anko smirked, stretching out along the roof like a cat basking in the sun with several sticks of dango held tightly between her fingers and her legs childishly swinging back and forth. She was _supposed_ to be patrolling the perimeter of the Chunin Exam stadium but this was the only fight she _really, really_ wanted to watch. Her comrades hadn't even tried to stop her. Genma moved to cover his eyes, to protect them from the white wave of oncoming smoke but stopped, suddenly beginning to laugh. Hayate raised his eyebrows. It would be an interesting fight after all if she had gotten them both pleasantly surprised so early into the first fight.

"Tell you what Hayate...this girl is good, but I bet you that the Hyuuga kid wins."

Hayate grinned knowingly.

"No need to bet, we both know that fact is true..." Sakura brushed a lock of behind her ear, looking every inch like a determined kunoichi "But there are ways that you can win the Chunin vest by _'not'_ fighting to the very bitter end."

Hayate once again was reminded of his Chunin exam held many years before, when he had faced a significantly younger and far more arrogant version of the now mellow man who stood to his left.

"Focus Hayate, _focus."_ Perhaps Genma hadn't changed as much Hayate hoped. That childish streak still remained 15 years later. Genma chuckled at the sour face that his pale skinned friend was making. The Hyuuga boy was cursing as he realized that each clone had an evenly distributed amount of chakra. There was no way to tell the real girl from the other shadow clones.

Sakura breathed a shaky sigh of relief as she realized that Neji had still not caught onto her plan, so she quickly moved onto step two of 'Take down Hyuuga Neji'. A plan that her sensei had put in place long before the match hade even begun. Apparently Anko had a disastrous run in with a Hyuuga when she was younger and had never forgiven them.

She refused to go into the details, much to Sakura's disappointment.

"Get ready to call the match Genma," Hayate whispered "She's about to go out like a light."

It was only when her remaining chakra finally began to die down that the cleverly used genjutsu broke down to reveal that the apparently solid Kage Bunshin were nothing more than reflections of light upon chakra. Not even a regular academy bunshin. Genjutsu.

The whole match had been nothing but a scam, a trick and Neji had played straight into it. She stumbled forwards, rapidly regaining her balance before she hit the dirt in an embarrassing display of weakness. Neji saw his chance and dashed forwards, nothing but pure fury and red rage crossing his mind, all he wanted to do was annihilate that _thing_ that stood in his way of vengeance. Both of her small, pathetically delicate hands began to move upwards and Neji smirked as he told himself how pitiful her defences were.

He _would_ win.

Slowly his confidence turned to dread as her hands stretched into the air, and her mouth parted in a small grin.

"I give up."

The two proctors blurred into motion, one skilfully knocking the blazing blue hands of the Hyuuga away from their intended target and the other carrying her out of range of any attacks that the furious Hyuuga Genin might unleash in her direction. Hayate carefully let her slide to the floor, where she wobbled unsteadily before regaining her feet.

"Thanks." She muttered, barely audible, her voice so quiet that the gentle breeze blew it away. Hayate nodded, before turning to Genma questioningly. The honey-eyed man blinked once, before turning to the silent crowd and declaring the Hyuuga Neji was the winner of the first round.

'_How remarkable' _The Hokage thought in amusement before writing something down on a slip of bone white paper _'She used several different genjutsu techniques to mirror a high level ninjutsu...and even though her opponent was far more powerful and experienced she managed to stall him long enough that aid may have arrived or an important mission carried out...'_ The Kazekage had not been watching the fight however, but seemed content with scanning his surroundings with curiosity. That had been a good first fight and the crowd were rearing for more action. They wanted the Uchiha to go against the Kazekage's son, yet Sasuke had yet to arrive.

There had been an interesting fight between the Kazekage's blonde haired daughter and Shikamaru from Asuma's Team 10 who almost had the match over and done with but forfeited at the last possible moment, had he waited just a second longer Hayate would have called the match. There was also a unremarkable match between Hikuro Kensuki and Kankuro no Subaku, which the elder and more experienced boy won.

In Genma's honest opinion the blond boy certainly put on a good show for a few minutes before he was taken out by the talented puppeteer from Suna. Hayate looked pretty impressed when Kensuki had managed a few moves from the Mikazuki no mai. No Genin was expected to learn Jounin level jutsu within the space of just one month. Genma carefully watched the silent red headed boy from Suna out of the corner of his eye, there was certainly something very wrong... he seemed almost _restless_. Maybe it was for his upcoming match, but Genma wasn't entirely sure.

The brown haired man glanced back down at his tattered leather watch.

Where was that kami forsaken _boy_? He sighed. Sasuke had five minutes to get his ass to the Exams or he could consider himself officially disqualified the Chunin Exams. High above in the stands, Sabaku no Temari fidgeted nervously. Fingers continuously tapping along the metal casing of her battle fan. Kankuro started to mutter something rude but was silenced by her icy cold glare. How were they supposed to know what to do if their Sensei was _dead_? He was the one who was going to tell them what to do and when to do it...

Without him it could all go horribly wrong... They had heard about the death of their Sensei about three weeks ago. He had been caught unaware and killed by a civilian from Konoha. She wasn't sad about the man's death in the least, but she felt satisfied when the offender had been imprisoned. Nobody could kill a Suna shinobi on _official_ business and get away with it. At first she had believed that the loss of her Jounin Sensei would mean nothing, but now she was nervous. They had handed the task of controlling Gaara to her. There was no way that she could control her younger brother, he was the one that controlled _her._

"Don't worry mother..." She heard her younger brother whisper to himself, like Gaara always did "He _will_ get here."

* * *

Naruto sat and stared at the door. He didn't blink, he didn't move and he barely breathed. After his true identity had been revealed he had been moved to the solitary confinement cell at the far corner of the prison building. The walls were at least four metres thick, reinforced with many layers of metal pipes and mesh to disrupt any chakra attacks from the inside or out, the floor and ceiling went on for at least six metres before reaching the elaborate multi-layered barrier jutsu that surrounded the entire cell. The young blond boy could sense the four Jounin class ninja who kept feeding the barrier with their own chakra. Obviously the old Hyuuga had guessed that he had planned to escape on the day of the Chunin Exams when he had expected the security to be weakened.

This certainly made things a lot more..._complicated_.

'_Damn it!'_

The ex-Anbu slapped the concrete bench in frustration and anger, ignoring the hairline cracks that erupted over its cream surface. He felt like the bench deserved it. One of the Jounin twitched in response to the brief influx of agitated chakra. Naruto smiled, his chakra always had been a little _different_. Said Jounin breathed out in relief as the chakra suddenly disappeared, not even leaving a trace behind it. The other Jounin were surprised at the control that their prisoner had over his remarkable chakra, not even they could mask or dissipate their chakra that quickly.

The Chunin relief team took over the duty of barrier maintenance barely an hour later, Naruto hissed in recognition as one of the signatures was painfully familiar. Code Name – Kuromeru, one of the former members of Anbu Assassination Squad 3 that undertook the SS class mission to Suna alongside the captain of said squad, Uzumaki Naruto. The blond haired boy didn't even _know_ he was still alive...last he had heard was that he had been hospitalized and then resigned from Anbu as soon as he was let out of his hospital bed. Of course it wasn't common to spend your entire career within Anbu, eventually you left and became a mission-nin or a sensei...like Kakashi.

"Who's in there?" The youngest Jounin asked in curiosity, flicking up his small black sunglasses and perching them on his blonde head to reveal light grey eyes.

Their deputy team leader, Aoba, just shrugged in annoyance. "Dunno, don't care...it's not like it's some mysterious missing-nin or anything" He drawled lazily, earning a furious glare from the oldest Chunin present "..._and_ we're missing the Chunin Exams that are _finally_ being held in Konoha..." He took a long drag on the smouldering cigarette before offering to Raidou, the captain of the Barrier Squad.

Raidou just sent him a cool, level glare and the cigarette was whisked away, never to be seen again. The three Chunin sighed in exasperation and then turned back to their barrier. The prisoner with the odd chakra was promptly forgotten about as the Chunin continued to whine about the Chunin Exams. Only one was quiet, the ever silent Namiashi Raidou.

* * *

Sasuke and Kakashi appeared in a chaotic swirl of green leaves. The dark haired Genin marched straight over to the two proctors, an arrogant smile present on his pale face. Kakashi frowned when he noticed that neither of his two other students were present, so he gave Sasuke one last pat on the shoulder before he disappeared towards the arenas' exit. The silver haired man just hoped they were both alive and in one piece, then he would have to find out about their matches and apologize profusely for not attending them.

Otherwise a certain blond would most certainly skin him alive.

'_Just a few more minutes and Konoha will be destroyed!'_ Orochimaru could barely contain his overflowing excitement. The Sandaime noticed the Kazekage's hands shaking and smiled kindly.

"Excited for the upcoming match Kazekage-sama?"

"But of course Hokage-sama, this _is_ the battle that every single one of us in the entire stadium has been waiting for. The others were merely to weed out those unworthy of being Chunin."

'_If only you knew pitiful old man_.' Orochimaru leered behind the face cloth. _'If only you knew!"_

* * *

There was a threatening rumble in the distance. Thunder? On such a nice day? The villagers continued onwards with their day to day lives, though faster than before...the impending rain on the forefront of their minds. The hidden Oto and Suna ninja watched from the shadows, ready to spring into action the moment the signal was given. They would not go down without a fight. Further away from the main streets, Naruto froze as he strained his senses. They were closing in. He could feel them gradually crawling towards them, using the impending storm to hide their presence. He was right. He _really_ wished that just this once he would be wrong. The combined force of both Oto and Suna was no larger than Konoha's own shinobi force, but Suna had spent many years hardening their troops under the so-called _true_ rules of a ninja in order to get the mission payments from their Daimyo instead of the mission being sent to Konoha...

Wait.

Was that the reason? The reason for the Invasion? Money? Panic threatened to overthrow his senses but he quickly regained control, his eyes shut in utter concentration. He needed to get out...and fast. Suna would not rest at seeing Konoha beaten, they would raze the entire village to the ground until not one woman or child remained. Oto would gladly follow the Kaze no kuni ninja in their plan.

"Fuuton..." Naruto whispered, the familiar whirling of the chakra bringing back many forgotten memories as it was finally manipulated into the last motion "Akubi Kachuu."

There was that death-like silence, nothing moved an inch, but the chakra that saturated every molecule was paralyzingly evident. Outside, Raidou leapt to his feet, barking the orders for a hasty retreat as the chakra pressure doubled in less than a second, that painstakingly familiar chakra overriding his brain for just a second before he could react. He grabbed the youngest Chunin by the collar of his vest, throwing him down the corridor with his deceptive strength before dashing after him, flinging himself around the corner and hastily throwing up the strongest chakra shield he could think of.

There was an audible groan of metal being tortured, which was the only warning of impending destruction. The walls of the cell burst _inwards_, the large boulder like walls easily torn apart into pebbles as they smashed into one another, showering the empty corridor with grey rubbles and the remains of twisted iron rods. Sunlight from the outside cast dark shadows among the chaos, highlighting the blond hair of the previously imprisoned shinobi.

Raidou just watched on, refusing to move, of all people he had never guessed that his old captain would be the one confined within the special security cell. Bright blue flecks danced chaotically within the spiralling wreckage, overcharged with reckless amounts of chakra. He had forgotten the vast supply at the beck and whim of his previous Taicho. Then as violently as it had started, the rubble fell to the floor, flooding the surrounding corridors with thick, grey dust. Raidou felt his chakra control lurch and the glowing blue barrier spluttered before dispersing and leaving them to the mercy of the oncoming wave of dust.

Naruto glanced quickly in their direction, worry manifesting itself in his clear blue eyes as he made a head count. His shoulders slumped in visible relief as the four cautious figures came into view amongst the dust from around the corner. He shot Raidou a sad smile and a jaunty wave before turning, ready to throw himself from the hole that he had just created. The brown haired Chunin couldn't stop himself; he pitched forwards in a desperate attempt to grab hold of the boy before he disappeared.

"Taichou!"

But he was too late. He was gone again. The other three Chunin guardedly rose to their feet, a little unsteady. Raidou was still stood with his hand outstretched in the direction that the blond boy had disappeared in, but he slowly dropped it to his side as his team drew closer.

" 'fter 'im."

"What?" Aoba asked loudly, striking up a cigarette, the whisky white smoke drifting upwards towards the remains of the ruined cells' ceiling. His pale face a picture of calm yet his shaking hands evidence of his surprise.

"We go after him." Raidou answered quietly, before launching himself into the bright sunshine with the other three Chunin at his heels.

Naruto was already far ahead, avoiding the hidden alleyways where the shinobi lurked with their suppressed chakra and the busy streets filled with kunoichi undercover. He had to reach the Hokage before the attack was sprung...how many members of the audience were loyal to Oto and Suna? How many would rush at the Hokage when the time came? There was another rumble, closer this time. A flash caught his eyes, followed by another threatening rumble. The clear blue sky was no longer blue, but that oppressing heat remained, sticking close to his skin. Lightning.

The stadium was just in front of him now, the white washed walls rising high into the sky, dotted with patrolling Konoha-nin who were unaware that the attack was going to happen in such a short amount of time. A band of the enemy had already infiltrated the fringes of Konoha and were making their way towards him. Naruto bit his lip and urged his legs to work harder, sparks of blazing blue chakra sparking in his wake.

Then there was a flash of yellow.

**5 Minutes Earlier**

"Hurry up!" The shadow hissed vehemently, crouched on top of the chain linked fence topped with barbed wire with minimal effort as the other shadow edged cautiously along the adjoining wall before gracefully leaping over the towering fence. He landed without so much as disturbing one particle of dust on the ground.

"Is that _hurried up enough for you_?" He hissed back as the first figure landed next to him silently. He couldn't actually _see_ his partner's face but he could feel the malicious glare that was being sent in his direction. If he had to liken it to something it felt like he was being pelted with extremely sharp senbon.

"If this doesn't go to plan the whole of _Konoha_ could _fall_!"

"And why should I care?" The blue skinned man shrugged in indifference. "It's _your_ village not mine."

Itachi scowled, about to make a sarcastic comment in return but stopped and listened carefully. There were two sets of unfamiliar footsteps walking towards their location and the two mysterious figures suddenly disappeared into a convenient shadowy corner nearby, effectively shielding them from the eyes of the patrolling guards.

"Did you hear something?" One guard asked the other, flicking his burnt out cigarette to the ground and roughly stubbing it out with a heavily booted foot.

"Nope...you're hearing things again." The weathered man shrugged "Like you always do..."

The guards disappeared around the next corner of the grey building complex, but the two shadows didn't move for at least two minutes after the security men had disappeared. The cigarette let out a few wistful puffs of greying smoke before it died out in the dirt.

"Kisame..." Itachi growled in warning, before rapidly turning around into a side passage and disappearing up the rusted escape ladder to the roof of the dreary and lifeless building. Kisame shrugged but quickly followed after his friend, who was stood eerily still at the top of the ladder. Kisame sighed and swung up the side of the building, wondering what Itachi had seen.

Oh.

The wall was blown open, surrounding the building and ground below with debris, a water pipe and been broken in the explosion a water was pooling rapidly in the confined courtyard below.

"Was that...?"

Itachi nodded, before spinning to face the former Kiri-nin. "If he's left then we need to go too..."

Kisame nodded and turned on his heel before dashing in the direction of the Chunin Exam Arena, leaving Itachi to follow him. He didn't want to look at the younger boy when his eyes were like that, so sad and _weak_.

* * *

_"Ne, Ne...Uchiha-san?"_

_Itachi turned in surprise as a young blonde boy with large sky blue eyes looked up at him in curiosity. The heir of the Uchiha clan panicked for a second, glad that there was no one to witness it; he had managed to gain a reputation as a cold hearted killing machine. In Anbu that was something that was smiled upon by the higher ups and he had big dreams of being promoted to Anbu captain. Now that dream was threatened by the presence of a mysterious sun haired, sky eyed child .Itachi fumbled for his words, a rare occurrence. How Shisui would laugh when he found out! _

_"Uchiha-senpai?"_

_Itachi blinked a few times, hoping that he had just overused the sharingan and had begun to hallucinate things. Things like the boy in front of him. When he looked down again the blond was now wearing a huge toothy smile, revealing stubby white teeth._

_"Are you lost...?" He trailed off, waiting for the boy to answer with his name. The boy understood and told him his name._

_"Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto."_

_The name was familiar, but Itachi, for all his powers of genius, he could not place the blond._

_"Are you lost Naruto?" He asked gently, thanking Kami again that nobody was nearby to hear him speak so kindly. He only spoke like this to his baby brother._

_"Nope."_

_Itachi squinted at the boy, who had continued to smile like an idiot._

_"So...Why are you here?"_

_"'Kashi told me to get you, he told me that he wouldn't let you have cabbage for a _week_!" _

''Kashi? As in Kakashi?'

_The blond looked very serious, wrinkling his nose in distaste as he spoke. "but cabbage is nasty, nobody should like that stuff."_

_Itachi continued to look baffled, completely thrown off by the seven year old enigma that stood in front of him. The blond hair was starting to look familiar._

_"Who's 'Kashi? How do I know you're not a spy?" Itachi hoped that he had said the right kind of thing. Though not even _Kusagakure_ would use children this young as spies. That only happened during the wars...right?_

_"I said 'Kashi?" The blond rubbed the back of his head nervously, chuckling as he did so "Man, I'm glad Inu-senpai didn't hear me say that...he would have killed me! Or worse! Taken my precious ramen away from me!" The kid whined, his voice sounding close to tears. Had it been any other situation Itachi would have begun to subtly panic._

_'So it _was_ Kakash__i_?'_ He inspected the kid closely, his eyes suddenly focusing on the dark, swirling tattoo mark that peaked out from under his left sleeve. It looked a little sore._ _ANBU?_

_"Report in." Itachi said in a monotonous voice, watching as the boy snapped to attention without a word, even though his eyes were narrowed in confusion and those bright blue eyes suddenly turned cold._

_"Kitsune reporting in, on mission from Inu-taichou to find Uchiha Itachi and return him to Anbu HQ for mission debriefing."_

_"Stand at ease."_

_The kid slumped, reverting back to his previous childlike innocence, smile intact and all. His dead eyes flickered back into life._ _"So 'tachi-senpai? Are you coming with me or am I going to have to force you?" the blond pumped an energetic fist. Itachi followed after the boy, wondering how he had been so casually demoted from Uchiha-senpai to Itachi-senpai._ _For some reason he realized that he didn't really care._

* * *

The blazing chidori smashed through the flawless sphere of sand that was supposed to protect Subaku no Gaara from all attacks, his so called 'Perfect Defence'. The stadium was deathly silent, not a single person spoke. Inside the darkness provided by the sphere of sand, the young Jinchuriki was confused.

"What's...this warm stuff...mother?" He pressed a cold pale hand to his shoulder, wincing as he felt something he had never felt before. Pain. The Suna Genin watched in fascination as the ruby red liquid dribbled lazily across his fingertips, eventually running down to his elbow and pooling at his feet.

Blood.

_His_ blood.

He screamed.

Pure white feathers began to lazily float from the sky. It was the beginning.

* * *

The Hokage and Kazekage stared at each other for a moment, neither moving towards the chaos that had erupted below them. Suddenly the Kazekage jumped to his feet as two Suna-nin appeared by his side, throwing a smoke bomb to the ground and grabbing the Hokage roughly by the arm. The Anbu guards moved to intercept, but they were too slow, only managing to annihilate the enemy Suna-nin before they themselves were killed.

"Hokage-sama!" A young voice called out, panic spiking within his voice but only slightly. Sarutobi didn't hear it however, it was muted by the sudden rush of wind. Two figures appeared by his side as he was entrapped within a purple barrier, Orochimaru appearing from an invisibility genjutsu, his pale face twisted in glee as his amber eyes regarded the elder man stood in front of him, but Orochimaru's snake-like sneer dropped from his face as he noted the two people who stood by each shoulder of the old Hokage.

"Wassup 'Rochi." Kisame grinned, beady eyes flickering in delight as Samehada's tip smashed into the roof tiles, sending them splintering in many directions, clattering to a halt around his feet "Haven't seen _you_ in a while."

Itachi didn't move, but his brow creased in anger. "Your orders Hokage-sama?"

* * *

Below in the arena, the silver haired sensei was searching for his student.

"Kensuki!"

The light haired boy spun rapidly, eyes flickering with fear as the kunai shuddered in his tight grip. The look of utter terror disappeared as the speaker was recognized, the kunai was lowered, but it was not put away. "Kakashi-sensei."

The silver haired Jounin smiled, eyes creasing upwards in a feeble attempt to reassure the Genin. It didn't work but Kakashi continued. "Sasuke has run off after a few certain individuals and I need you to go after him for me."

Kensuki pouted, but the effect was ruined when an enemy Genin attempted to kill him and he had to duck and spin to avoid the wild attack. Tears began to stream down the boy's face.

"I'm so sorry." Kakashi froze as he saw the kunai descend towards the enemy Genin and in one quick movement he covered Kensuki's eyes and pulled backwards, toppling the boy to the floor and quickly disposing of the sobbing enemy. The enemy Genin fell backwards with a yell of pain before lying completely motionless on the ground. Kakashi would not allow his Genin to kill. Not if he could help it. Kensuki grabbed the fabric of his trousers with both hands and squeezed until his knuckles turned white until he managed to control the flow of tears. He stumbled onto unsteady feet.

"I'm sure that bastard...can take care of himself."

"Ah you see, he can't and that's why I'm asking you."

"I...I see."

"So can you do it for me?"

The Genin boy nodded slowly, panic still evident in his eyes yet determination shone through. Kakashi hoped against all hope that they would all come back alive. He didn't know what he would do if another teammate died because he wasn't vigilant enough.

"He's headed towards the east gate...you should catch up in time!"

"Yes sir!" Kensuki turned and ran, quickly disappearing from sight amongst the struggling bodies that littered the arena.

Kakashi's eyes widened and he spun quickly, sharpened kunai suddenly in his hands as he let them fly, to his surprise they were stopped by bare hands in mid flight.

"You should be more careful of where you throw these things in future." A familiar voice drawled as the kunai were thrown back, embedding into the ground in between his feet.

"Always such a show off." Kakashi muttered as Naruto slowly relaxed, a look of worry crossing his face before it quickly disappeared.

"Something wrong?"

"The Shishienjin...I can't..." Naruto trailed off, his eyes glazed over yet with a brief flicker of his fingers two enemy-nin were downed by a perfect one shot kunai. Kakashi knew what he meant, the Hokage was trapped within that barrier yet there was nothing he could do about it.

"Naruto I need you to do something else for me, another favour."

"Oh?" it was followed by an inquisitive, sideward glance.

"Kensuki has gone after Sasuke but he'll need back-up against the Jinchuuriki." Blue eyes snapped open in surprise. That's who he had been looking for but had been unable to find so Suna-nin had abandoned the main fight? "I need you to go with him. East Gate."

Naruto grinned, but like always it didn't quite meet those endless blue eyes. "Yes sir!" The blond spun on his heel and dived back into the chaotic fray, kunai glinting in the light as they tore through those that got in the way of his mission. Kakashi felt that recognizable stab of fear that he felt every time he watched his Sensei's son fight like that, but he didn't have time to waste. Oto-nin continued to flow into Konoha like a never ending wave.

"Raikiri!"

Lighting flashed from the sky as the rain began to fall.

* * *

It was only three minutes later that Naruto found trouble.

_'Idiot, idiot, IDIOT!'_

A Nara, by the look of him. A Genin or Chunin at most, using his clans' famous Kagemane Jutsu to restrain the handful of more experienced enemy shinobi. It was painfully obvious that the Nara was nearing his time limit as sweat and rain trickled down his tanned skin.

The Oto-nin knew it too.

The boys' shaking hands were trembling yet he still managed to gather a handful of kunai and ready them to throw. It would be unlikely that he would hit his target. Naruto wondered why he always had to stick his neck out into situations like these. In one rapid movement, he leapt from the cover of the tree tops with several kunai in his hands, right into the middle of the unsuspecting Oto-nin. The blond spun into the air, kunai flying into flesh not protected by the Jounin vests and after flipping onto his hands, his feet connected with surprised bodies. He quickly checked their pulses and as far as he was aware they were all dead before they hit the floor. The rain and blood stained the ground red.

"Y-you!"

Rising to his feet, Naruto rolled his shoulders in an attempt to remove the stiffness plaguing his muscles after being cooped up in such as small space for over four weeks. The boy recognized him? "Do I know you?"

"Nara Shikamaru, you were with Kakashi-sensei at the ramen stand."

Now that jogged a vague memory, he had seen the dark haired Nara somewhere before...but that wasn't important now, he needed to find Kensuki and Sasuke before the Ichibi found _them_. "Where did Kensuki and Sasuke go?"

The Genin boy chose the wrong moment to be stubborn.

"How do I know you're not on their side?" Shikamaru pointed at the corpses of the dead Oto-nin, Naruto resisted the urge to smack him clean across the face. Would an ally slaughter you with no warning?

"Look _kid_, I've been stuck in an absolute hell hole for a month now and I'm feeling _pretty cranky_, so unless you want to end up like _them_-" He had no need to explain who 'they' were, the appearance of a bloodstained kunai explained it better than any words ever would "Then I'd shut the _hell_ up and tell me where they went."

Without a sound, the trembling Genin raised a finger and pointed in a direction away from the village. Naruto walked forward and patted the boy, who was attempting to back away, awkwardly on the head before disappearing into the trees once more. In the distance, an inhuman roar echoed in his ears, like a great beast in pain, along with several more human like yells.

Thunder rumbled ominously in the sky.

He had to hurry, or they might never make it. His senpai would _not_ be pleased if he lost _more_ team mates. Not pleased at all.

* * *

Has anybody else noticed that when you enter down a line it goes missing as soon as you save it? :\

Surprisingly... This chapter _has _been written for a while but my Beta Lazaros has been plagued by bad luck and, amongst the chaos, could not Beta!

So yeah...I'm sure you may have noted some mistakes that I, in my blindness, have not seen. Point them out please!

Laz has also written a new fanfic called Naruto of the Healing Flora which promises to be kick-ass...believe me I've had a few little details and I've had to constantly harass him to update! _***cough* **__Omake__** *cough***_ If you want to read his fanfic his profile is on mine so just click and find!

Also along with my previous computer troubles (which are over and done with :D) I've been diagnosed with a hand...disorder thing which is pointless to explain but my mother won't allow me much time on the computer however she _**must **_sleep at some point so updating will never be as slow as this again! In apology this chapter is about twice the size of my average one at 7000 words ...and...

A SUPER DUPER UBER AWESOME THANK YOU FROM ME FOR REVIEWS!


	19. Then There Was Lightning

Next Chapter Awaits! All 7,000 words of it!

* * *

'_Is this...it?'_ Blinding pain erupted throughout his entire body as he roughly connected with an unyielding tree trunk, his vision blurring as he valiantly endeavoured to rise to his shaking feet. His bruised and battered fingers scrambling wildly in an attempt to find something to hold on to in order to help him stand.

"Get out of here!" That voice was familiar...though the tone was not, a bizarre mixture of heart-felt fear and worry, when it was _usually_ so aloof and arrogant.

Kensuki finally found his voice so that he could speak his mind. "I-I was sent to help!"

The thunderous roar of sand was increasing now, mixing and blending with the roar from the darkened heavens. Sasuke growled in irritation and quickly landed next to Kensuki, who was in far worse a condition than him, with thousands of bleeding cuts littering the boy's body where the attacking sand had scraped layers of the skin away. The sky gave one last rumble then the rain began to fall from the sky and clung to his bare skin, drenching his clothes.

"W-What is he?" Kensuki whispered, his frightened breaths rattling annoyingly in Sasuke's ears, but the irritable Uchiha could find no words to reply to his question. He didn't know the answer. Rain began to trickle down his face. The Suna Genin had begun to transform only minutes before, the sand corrupting the redhead until he was that terrifyingly unpredictable monster of sand. There was no way they could continue but this time there was no Kakashi to save them from the enemy, they were miles away from any help. Sakura was the one who could sense chakra to search for aid, but she was still recovering in the medical bay after her match in the Chunin Exams.

Thunder and lightning cracked from the sky, making them jump in surprise.

"MOVE!"

Sasuke didn't know why, but his hands suddenly jumped of their own accord to grab a hold of Kensuki's sleeve and pulled with all his strength to move the blond boy out of the way of the attacking sand plume that suddenly erupted from the ground. Behind the protection of the remaining trees, Kensuki managed to stutter a surprised thanks, to which Sasuke replied.

"It won't happen again."

Kensuki managed to grin, before it turned to a grimace of pain as some of the gashes began to weep, blood mixing with the water from the sky. Sasuke closed his eyes and took a calming breath, the rain trickling over his eyelids, there was no way that this monster could kill him before he managed to avenge his massacred clan and kill the _traitor_. Their chances of winning were miserably slim, Kensuki was out for the count and his own reserves of chakra were pitifully low, he had maybe one or two jutsu left and then he would barely be able to move, let alone defend his team mate from the bloodthirsty Suna Genin. He rubbed the muscles in his arms in an attempt to dull the pain whilst Kensuki was, yet again, attempting to stand to his feet. Sasuke sighed in aggravation and roughly shoved him back to the muddy forest floor as his hands moved through a familiar set of hand seals.

"Katon..." He took a deep breath and left the cover of the trees to face Gaara head on "Gou-"

His jutsu was suddenly cut off by a cold hand firmly pressing against his mouth and pulling violently backwards so that he stumbled and the gathered chakra dissipated. Sasuke dodged to the side, bringing his elbow up to swing back in an attempt to fend off his assailant, who just let go, easily ducking under the sailing limb to watch the Konoha Genin loose his balance in the mud and go tumbling to the floor. Sasuke saw red as he heard the enemy begin to chuckle and he readied his fists for a second time but when he turned he limply dropped them in surprise to his sides.

"Y-you?"

"I should hope so..." Naruto, with his blond locks plastered to his head with the rain, stretched his arms lazily above his head and yawned "You boys need any help here?"

Despite the imminent danger of a raging, mad _monster _both Genin stopped and stared at the familiar face of Uzumaki Naruto, however the aura he exuded was nothing like the usually quiet and reserved blond boy.

His ripped and tattered clothes were covered in layers of encrusted dirt, blood and grime, as was most of his body but the rain had begun to wash it away, leaving his pale skin streaked in black, white and red. The cerulean blue eyes were sharper, colder... no longer unfocused and wondering like Team 7 had become used to seeing on a regular basis. His mouth was set in a grim line and in his red covered hands he casually held three kunai, two regular shaped and the third seemed to be custom made.

"Uzumaki!" Sasuke shouted in warning "This is too dangerous! Just go find Kakashi for help and don't do something stupi-"

He was interrupted again by a glisteningly sharp kunai to his neck, digging into his skin deep enough to draw blood. The dark haired boy gulped in fear, the glinting, silver blade pressed closer to the delicate skin of his throat

"You!" Naruto whispered vehemently, a half-crazed look flittering across his face "Will shut up. Now."

Sasuke breathed out cautiously, aware that any wrong move would probably get him killed. Naruto smiled threateningly and removed the kunai. "Good Uchiha." He murmured, turning back towards the transforming Jinchuuriki "I _am_ the help."

"What are you doing? This is no place for a civilian to be playing about!" Sasuke growled "We are at _war_!"

"I gathered _that_ much..." Naruto said, bitterness tainting his words as he gestured towards Gaara "...and there's no way you can handle this."

Kensuki opened his mouth just to repeat the same question as Sasuke had only seconds before. "_You?_"

A look of bemusement flittered across the blond boys' face as he nodded slowly, like one would do to as small, confused child, but that quickly changed to an expression of concern as he noticed the condition of the two Genin.

"Senpai's gonna kill me for letting you get into this shape..." He sighed, rolling his eyes in resignation and ripping his frayed, blue sleeves from his already battered shirt and quickly yet efficiently tying them around the worst of the injuries on the two other boys "Unfortunately I have no time to show you the extent of my Medical jutsu knowledge...That will have to do until then..."

"There won't be a _then_!" The Suna jinchuuriki chuckled darkly as the sand whistled around the clearing menacingly, making the two Genin scramble for cover yet Naruto did not move an inch "I will _smash _and _crush_ and _destroy_ you all! There will be _no escape_ from my _mother_!"

_'M-mother?' _Naruto calmly watched the transforming jinchuuriki as he start his enraged charge towards the trio '_His...mother?'_

Kensuki let out a yell and sped backwards, away from the incoming enemy, his hands sliding desperately in the mud. Sasuke, knowing an apparently lost situation when he saw one, also leapt backwards out of the attack range of the sandstorm. It was Kensuki who first noticed that Naruto had not moved from his spot, his azure eyes staring blankly into space as the terrifying beast was almost upon him.

"NARUTO!"

Outside it was raining.

However, the barrier erected by the Oto-nin didn't just repel enemy attacks, but seemingly the very weather as well.

"This is between me and Sarutobi-sensei!" Orochimaru spat, an edge of fear evident in his raspy voice "You have no _right_ to _interfere_!"

Neither of the two _intruders_ responded immediately but unusually it was Itachi who was the first of the two to speak.

"You hurt my little brother." Itachi growled in uncharacteristic anger "I have every right."

Kisame's mouth stretched even wider as his dark, beady eyes glittered in amusement. "And me?" He paused "I just don't _like_ you very much, that's _all_."

The Sandaime Hokage sighed in a very similar fashion to the blond ex-Anbu had only moments before and a weary smile graced his withered lips "If you three are quite done exchanging pleasantries..."

Itachi was the only one who had the decency to looks slightly sheepish and murmured a quiet, sincere: "I apologise Hokage-sama."

Orochimaru bristled and then turned to face Hiruzen once more, but the old man was already talking.

"Orochimaru..." The obvious lack of the usual –kun suffix that had become like second nature to them both was like a sharp slap to the face. This fight would _not_ be as easy as the Snake Sannin had first planned if the senile old man was renouncing his ties to him, his former student.

"I am no longer able to challenge you in terms of power, strength or focus..." The pale skinned man smiled. Had that old fool given up before the fight had even begun? "However there happen to be two people here who are your match or more, are you willing to fight head to head with us all?"

"The quarrel is between us Sarutobi! They do not need to be involved in this!" he spat wildly, amber eyes conveying the hidden fear deep within. Hiruzen smiled wearily, gesturing with his left arm to the ruined streets of Konoha filled with fleeing civilians, battling ninja and corpses.

"Neither do they." He whispered, pain evident in the aged voice.

"_This_-"Orochimaru growled, pausing for a moment in furious thought "It is -! Have you become so insecure about your strength that you must unfairly resort to having backup?"

"We're _ninja."_ Kisame chuckled, his voice patronisingly slow and quiet, yet tinged with his usual sarcasm "We don't _play fair_."

He easily dodged the thrown kunai by stepping slightly to the left and then, like Itachi had read the Kirigakure ninja's mind, he fluidly returned the favour.

"Oh my Itachi-kun!" Orochimaru purred, his eyes narrowing in delight "Did I tell you what-!"

"Orochimaru!" Hiruzen and Kisame growled in unison, warning the man to take that conversation no further. They both knew that the Uchiha's mind was a delicate thing and could be broken easily if his weaknesses were discovered.

"What?" Orochimaru asked innocently, but neither of the two had turned to look at him, both were far too occupied with staring at the teenage boy in their midst.

"I am fine." The Uchiha stoically replied to their unasked question "I _feel_ fine."

He sounded uncertain. This worried the Sandaime Hokage of Konoha greatly.

"Sen'ei Tajashu!" Snakes erupted from the man's hands, swarming chaotically towards the three lone figures, who all reacted in different manners. The Hokage rapidly preformed a flawless Katon jutsu, turning the enemy summonings into grey piles of ash that floated lazily to the floor, Kisame effortlessly batted each and every reptile away with the bandage covered Samehada and Itachi casually downed them with deadly, silver shuriken that danced within his nimble fingers. When the clouds of smoke from the dispelled summoning finally disappeared, the Hokage breathed in sharply. Panic evident in his tone as he spoke.

"Do not let those coffins emerge from the ground!"

Kisame, without questioning the order, bounded forwards with Samehada extended, suddenly lacking the customary bandages that shielded the others from its chakra absorbing abilities. Itachi was close on his heels, dark eyes bleeding into the angry red of the Mangekyou Sharingan. The Hokage leapt directly towards the Snake Sannin, hoping to break his former students' concentration and shatter the dangerous, forbidden technique that he was attempting to complete.

"NO!" the former Konoha ninja yelled out, noticing the jeopardy that his incomplete summonings were in, but was stopped from coming to their aide by his withered Sensei, who locked into combat with his adamantine staff. The nearest coffin, marked as the 'First' shattered into a mixture of earth, ash and blood as Samehada collided with the ceramic casing, stripping it of the ominous chakra that held it together. The remains of a dark haired corpse, small enough to belong to a child, was visible under the debris, the pale, clammy skin coated in blood and dirt. Vacant, feminine grey eyes stared out into the cloud ridden sky.

The 'Second' burst into unquenchable black flames that not even the strongest Suiton jutsu could ever extinguish, crumbling to the floor in just seconds. The blackened, skeletal remains of the second corpse sacrificed by Orochimaru to complete the technique sitting amongst the ruined ashes of its' forlorn final resting place.

The 'Third', although it was marked as the 'Fourth' was stopped by a deadly volley of metal weapons, provided by both of the ex-Akatsuki members, having suddenly come to terms with what the coffins contained. They understood the urgency to destroy the third casket, if the Yondaime Hokage became their opponent, it would be unlikely that they would survive for much longer...

Orochimaru's horrified expression twisted to one of smug confidence.

"Do you think that was all I had?"

Then a fourth, followed quickly by a fifth and a sixth, reinforced with metal plates and sharpened spikes, slowly started to creep out of the ground in front of the eyes of a dumbstruck Uchiha, the red and white symbol engraved on the lids causing him to remain completely paralyzed. Nobody could move a muscle, the Hokage staring at the caskets with dumbstruck fear that he had not felt in several years.

_Seven years ago._

Not since the Uchiha Massacre was ordered that sorrowful, autumn night. The lids fell open, revealing the serene, ghostly pale faces of three familiar Uchiha, garbed in the typical Konoha Jounin uniform.

'_Tou-sama...Okaa-sama, A-Aniki?_' Three, almost identical, pairs of coal black eyes snapped open, wandering for a second before fixating upon the bowed head of the dark haired boy in front of them, who rested on his bent knees. The two males instantly sneered, removing their concealed weapons so that they might be of more use in the upcoming battle. The female was not so quick to arms. Her depthless eyes softening in sorrow as they rested on the ink-haired teen, she softly mouthed one pained word.

'_No!_'

"I'm sure you want to say hello...right Itachi-kun?" Orochimaru sneered hatefully, gleeful malice dripping off every word "After all...you've missed them _so_."

"Traitor!" Uchiha Fugaku spat, eyes sparking into the crimson spinning wheel of the Sharingan.

"Don't let me ever hear you call me your _brother_ again you _worthless_ turncoat!" Shisui growled "We've all seen how your twisted idea of _family_ has worked out!"

Mikoto stayed silent, her eyes never leaving her eldest son but her fingers tightened around the leather handle of the kunai.

"Now I believe that you were saying something about having the advantage Sarutobi..." Orochimaru grinned "I think that if you look again you will find that the tables have now turned to _my_ favour."

"Itachi?" Kisame called softly, making a point of completely ignoring Orochimaru and the resurrected Uchihas in favour of inquiring after the _living_ Uchiha in their midst.

"I'm fine." He repeated, his voice muffled and slightly strained as he stood to his feet "What are your orders Hokage-sama?"

* * *

"NARUTO!"

The colossal wave of sand began to slowly fall towards them, gravity taking a hold of the tiny rock particles and forcing them to crash back to earth. At the speed that it was falling, there was no way that they could all escape in time, but there was no way that Sasuke was going to die without at least trying. However an overly firm grip stopped any notions he had of escaping.

"Don't move idiot!" A voice hissed in annoyance, roughly pulling the boy from his mid-air retreat back to the ground with a sickening crunch, his joints protesting from their harsh treatment. He raised his eyes to find himself confronted with another Naruto, whose infuriated blue eyes were rolling in frustration. He opened his mouth but no words came out and Sasuke blinked in confusion as yet _another_ Naruto pulled Kensuki gently to his side.

"Now be good you two." One of the Naruto's smiled eerily, white teeth glinting as the lightning reflected off of them "And keep your heads covered!"

Both of the Genin, without question, threw both of their arms protectively over their heads, but neither of the two boys closed their eyes. An odd mixture of fear and morbid curiosity kept their eyelids peeled back. Amidst the confusion, four Naruto's were visible, three forming a protective circle around the Genin and the fourth was the assumed _original_ who hadn't moved from his spot, only metres away from the oncoming lethal sand jutsu. The first particles of sand began to patter down to earth, mixing along with the rain to form yet more mud.

"Fuuton!" The first clone raised his arms to the cloud-filled sky, now blotted out by the falling sand.

"Mittsu!" As did the second, almost in a futile attempt to avoid the onslaught.

"Kuchi!" Then the third, although his arms were stretched out towards the other two, bright, blue chakra blazing like flame from his exposed skin. It was so bright and potent that the blue was reflected in the dull sand above.

"Uma!" They chorused together, as the chakra from the third Naruto exploded violently overhead into an electrifying, sapphire tornado. The wind thundered in their ears, combining the wind, rain and sand into a chaotic, whirling mass that rested only metres away. His ears screamed in pain, the noise from the jutsu like a whining tin whistle inside his brain, echoing endlessly within his head.

Kensuki watched in fascination as shadows played throughout the swirling confusion, contorted shapes of untamed horses, whinnying, snorting and pawing at the sand in wild defiance. The lightning flashed once again, highlighting the momentarily defined shapes of three shadow horses, and then they disappeared once more as the rumble of thunder followed. The sand vortex then began to rise up towards the darkened sky, thinning out and dispersing smoothly into the rain, falling harmless into the dampened soil. Then one of the Naruto's barked out in warning.

"I said cover your _heads_ dammit!"

In his curiosity his arms had dropped limply to the floor and a quick glance towards Sasuke showed that the dark haired boy had also done the same. Rapidly clamping his hands, _painfully_, back around his head, the last thing he saw was the remains of the tornado fiercely split into three funnels. His ears hurt from the excruciating howling, rumbling whining and agonizing screaming of the all but tortured wind.

Then, as suddenly as the ear-splitting noise from the jutsu had appeared... It vanished.

It was replaced by the patter of the sand cloud hitting the ground. Sasuke cautiously cracked open a sweat and blood encrusted eyelid to see Naruto still stood where they had last seen him, with his back turned to them, but at his feet laid the unmoving body of an unconscious Subaku no Gaara. No traces of the monster remained.

**Minutes before**

Calmly, Naruto raised his arm in front of himself with his palm outstretched and as the sand approached he expelled his chakra to create a shield of wind. Not even a particle touched him, but that meant that the wave would hit the Genin at full force. He rapidly created three Kage Bunshin to protect them at all costs. After all, he had _promised _them_ both_ that he would watch over them, even if the two Genin had no idea. A fine covering of chakra began to coat his right palm, spitting and fizzling almost in impatience as Naruto waited for the Suna Jinchuuriki to make the first move.

_There_!

Pivoting on his heels, Naruto spun fluidly away from the charging boy who appeared from the sand storm, calmly ducking to avoid the clawed hand that was aimed for his throat.

'_Stupid... he willingly lets his 'mother' control him...'_ Naruto wearily closed his eyes, regret welling in the back of his throat for unknown reasons... _'Did Suna really think if they just _ignored_ him he would disappear?_' Lightning flashed once more and Naruto used that to his advantage, having placed a Hiraishin seal on the body of Subaku no Gaara as he had rampaged past only seconds before. The red head had no chance and Naruto knew it. Did he kill the boy? Let him be free of his so called 'mother'? Of a life that didn't want him? With a family that didn't love him?

Or did he give the boy a chance? Another go at life that any other enemy would not give their targets. Could he change the boy? As the torrent of sand begin to thin out he flashed through four sets of hand seals, suddenly grateful for the brief time he had spent training with the Torture and Interrogation Department under Ibiki and Inoichi when he had thought about specializing in T&I.

_'Someday, I hope you forgive me for this_'Naruto gritted his teeth as the palm of his bare hand made contact with the top of the boy's sand covered head, '_I hope this will help you...Subaku no Gaara...'_

For the ex-elite Anbu and troubled boy, time stopped as the ninjutsu begun to set in and their world's faded to generic white.

'_Good to know that everything worked out correctly...'_ The blond sighed in relief _'If this had gone wrong I would have come face to face with Shukaku_.'

He needed the sand monster to be completely unaware of his plan to save the decaying shell of his host's mind. Gaara was sat on the unending floor of white, staring blankly ahead, neither blinking or appearing to breath. Naruto supposed that it was a defence mechanism; the Suna boy had never visited his mindscape without the Ichibi beside him, whispering sweet nothings in his ears. Naruto didn't bother with hand seals this time, a henge was an academy art and it would have been embarrassing to have to channel chakra into hand seals for it.

When Gaara finally turned around to survey his surroundings, he came face-to-face with a gentle smile and kind grey eyes.

"Gaara-kun?" A soft female voice whispered, barely carrying in the void in which they currently resided.

"Mother...I thought...you had left me..." A hint of unshed tears shone in Gaara's voice as his voice wobbled in emotion and Naruto, under the henge of Karura - Gaara's mother, he stepped forwards to embrace the boy. Gaara however, recoiled away and braced his hands over his head to protect himself from oncoming blows. Naruto winced, what torture had the Ichibi put this boy under for him to think that a display of love would become one of violence and pain?

The blond ninja shook his head, cursing the Ichibi softly under his breath... even if this did make his job far easier than he had expected.

"It's okay Gaara-kun...that was all a bad dream..." She smiled, skin creasing around her eyes in happiness as her son inched closer "That's right...come here."

Gaara latched around her middle, but no tears fell from his sea coloured eyes.

"This is all a trick mother...it's all lies..." The boy whispered into her ear "You're just going to hurt me again."

Karura's fingers tightened, part of it an act but unconsciously Naruto did the same, his knuckles turning white with pressure.

"That was all the demon's fault..." The boy stiffened immediately as she said the word '_demon'_ but she stroked his hair away from his face in a calming manner "He was the one that told you to do those horrible things...Kept me locked away from you and lied to you in my form..."

"M-mother?" Confusion was overflowing from the tentative tone that they boy had begun to adopt and hope welled up within Naruto's chest... maybe Sunagakure's mistake could be fixed? Naruto took a gamble.

"When they called you a monster... they weren't talking about _you_." She tapped a finger against his pale forehead, where the blood red tattoo resided, "They were talking about Shukaku." She flicked her finger lightly across where his heart lay in his torso. The location of the apparently malfunctioning seal.

"S-shukaku? He's the one...?" Karura nodded sadly, unshed tears glistening in her eyes. Gaara bit his lips in indecision and then slowly wiped each one away as they trickled down her pale cheeks. "Don't cry mother..." Gaara stared in shock, mind slowly coming to terms with the word as he sprung forwards yet again, fingers clasping painfully tight as tears streamed down his cheeks.

"Mother, mother, mother..." He whispered furiously, eyes squeezed tight in happiness and embarrassment. Karura hugged back. Naruto hoped this was the kind of happy ending Gaara had always hoped for. It was something he had dreamed of for many years of his life...

'_The plan idiot_.' Naruto scolded himself silently, absentmindedly patting Gaara's head comfortingly '_Don't mess it up when we've got this far..._'

"D-do you want to get rid of Shukaku with me?" She asked softly, her soft breath tickling Gaara's tear stricken face.

"G-get rid? Forever?"

Karura nodded, a small graceful smile that reminded Gaara of Temari when she was looking at something pretty, like clothes or jewellery or boys... "I can help you seal him away again...but that means that I have to go away..."

Gaara's eyes opened wide in panic as he stammered in alarm. "B-but I only j-just got y-y-ou back! Don't leave me all alone again!"

"You still have your brother and sister don't you? They stay away from Shukaku but once he's gone..." Karura smiled once more "They still love you, you know?"

Gaara nodded and wiped his tears away with his sleeve. She held out her hand and reluctantly, he took it. The white changed to a dark dimly lit room that had the appearance of a particularly scruffy bar after closing time and the smell of one too. Behind the bar there was a large cage that disappeared into darkness, at the entrance to the cage there was a large plate with a seal crudely gauged into its shattered surface. Naruto shook his head. When he got his hands one whoever had made this shoddy seal... he _would_ hurt them...badly.

Karura relinquished her hold on Gaara and reached within the fold of her clothes, returning with a sealing brush already dripping with ink. Gaara breathed in noisily and his mother shushed him softly. Shukaku had no knowledge that they were there, and Naruto preferred that it remained that way.

"This will hurt a little Gaara-kun..." Karura whispered, biting her tongue in concentration as the ink laden bristles made contact with the uneven porcelain plate "But everything will be better...I promise."

All Gaara could do was watch and nod mutely, his voice betraying him. Naruto quickly looked over the remains of the seal, glad that it was still recognizable as a butchered Iron Armour seal, that the Hachibi was supposedly sealed away with. '_Some seal master this was..._'

The Iron Amour seal was definitely the wrong choice as it was a weak seal that allowed far too much foreign chakra to leak through into Gaara's chakra system, it needed to be reworked into a Four Trigrams Armour Seal, which luckily didn't require sacrifices if a certain strand of valuable seal work was left intact. Which luckily, it was.

With a few deft strokes of the brush, the seal had begun to look far more powerful than it had moments before as chakra sparked through the thick, black lines. Gaara watched in fascination but didn't even utter a word. The last part of the Armour Seal was in place and Naruto swiftly moved onto the Four Trigrams seal, wrist deftly bending back and forth as the brush glided across the porcelain face. Both Karura and Naruto bit their lip this time, but Naruto didn't notice. He was engrossed in the extremely familiar seal in front of his eyes, wondering how his father had managed to create three, overlapping seals in the short amount of time he had whilst fighting the Kyuubi.

Naruto resisted the urge to grin in appreciation; his father was one _bad-ass _shinobi...

The last four seals were put into place, carefully and artistically inked onto the cream plate and Karura smiled happily as she turned to Gaara, her mouth opening to speak reassuring words to her son but was interrupted by the pained bellows of the Ichibi finally awakening from his slumber.

"YOU!" Came the murderous scream as yellow, beady eyes made contact with grey-hidden blue. Shukaku knew who he was, Naruto couldn't say he was surprised, they had met in the past before.

"Go Gaara!" Karura commanded him through gritted teeth "You need to get out of here!"

"b-but Okaa-san!" Gaara blinked out of existence as Naruto released the first stage of the mind-entering jutsu perfected by Yamanaka Inoichi for those incapable of using the Yamanaka clan techniques.

"YOU!" This time, Shukaku was far closer to the bars, which Naruto noticed in satisfaction, looked far stronger and closer together than they had before the Four Trigrams Armour seal was put in place.

"Hello Shukaku."

"Don't 'Hello Shukaku' me _bastard_!" It spat "Last time we met you put my container out of action for two weeks because of that stupid mission!" The mission to Suna by order of the Yondaime Kazekage.

"Oh well...What does it matter anymore...?" Naruto grinned and tapped the plate "There's no way you're ever going to leave that cage again."

"You B-!"

"Bastard? How predictable..." Naruto turned towards the exit of the bar and let the Henge slip away from around him "Do yourself a favour and leave the kid alone, eh Shukaku?"

"UZUMAKI!"

Naruto blinked out of existence, leaving an enraged, but caged demon, far within the recesses of the recovering mindscape of Subaku no Gaara. He hoped it was worth all the effort.

When he blinked he was back in the rain, hair laying slick against his face and his clothes sticking to his skin. Gaara lay on the floor, having passed out from the pain that the reconfiguring of the seal had caused him.

Changing a seal placed on your bare skin wasn't a pleasant experience. Naruto could vouch for that several times over. He felt the clones behind him disperse into nothingness, both their remaining chakra and fleeting memories returned to him instantly and his head spun with the momentum of them. His clones had used the Three Headed Horse Technique to protect the Genin from the sand tsunami, protecting _both_ of them from harm. The blond boy was glad that he had managed to keep those promises for once.

'_You told me I could do it...Tora-chan_' It no longer hurt when he said her name, when he saw her smile light up inside his mind... '_I didn't believe you when you said that I could...thank you._'

Naruto turned sharply to his right, flinging the two kunai held within his hands into the tree line, causing the mysterious figures to squawk in surprise and drop to the forest floor. Temari and Kankuro raised their hands to the dark sky in surrender.

"We know when to give up." Temari informed him, walking towards her downed brother with a gentle look in her eyes, before turning them on Naruto "What did you do to him?"

Naruto was silent for a moment, which made Temari growl in characteristic anger before he said. "I fixed the seal...Shukaku isn't going to bother anybody anymore."

Both Temari and Kankurou stared at the blond boy as he turned and picked up the struggling Uchiha and Kankurou's opponent from the Chunin Exams' Final Stage and disappeared back in the general direction of Konoha. Temari and Kankuro exchanged a stare before the puppet ninja slowly bent down and checked Gaara's pulse, which was oddly slow and sedate.

"He's still alive..." The middle Subaku sibling turned to the eldest "What should we do?"

Temari slowly turned her face to the sky and let the rain run down her face as she took a deep breath in. What should they do? That strange Konoha shinobi had said that the seal had been fixed and Temari believed him. She had never seen her youngest brother asleep without Shukaku's soul emerging from the murky recesses of Gaara's mind. She had always despised her brother, he was the one that killed their mother, and frightened away her friends _and_ the boys, he was the one that killed Uncle Yashamaru and branded his own forehead with 'love'... But Temari remembered when Gaara was small, too small to walk or crawl on his own, and had been handed to her to look after. At first she had been disgusted by his odd eyes and features that he had stolen from their dead mother, but as Gaara had continued to giggle and dribble and squirm about in her arms, she had begun to smile gently down at him, patting his head softly and cooing soft words... That had stopped when Gaara had first begun to kill.

Though now, looking down at Gaara as he slept soundly without a raging monster over taking his body, she felt a resurgence of those old feelings.

"We're taking him home Kankuro." She muttered softly, ignoring her brothers' look of utter surprise that crossed his purple painted face "Take him out of here...Suna is retreating from this lost battle and Oto can continue to fight on..." Her eyes flickered towards the pillars of smoke that arose from a burning Konoha, in the direction that the almost familiar blond ninja had disappeared in. Kankurou scowled, but hefted the sleeping body of his brother into his arms and disappeared in the opposite bearing of the burning village. The teen Genin wanted nothing more to do with the pointless battle behind him.

A single charred leaf fluttered from the sky and Temari caught it in the palm of her hand.

"The will of fire huh?"

She spun on her heel and followed after her brothers, smiling gently as she did so. Maybe...just maybe, she could make everything better. The lone leaf fluttered to the ground, landing amidst the blood, sand and mud that littered the forest floor.

* * *

"You know what Orochi-_teme_." Kisame spat at the former Akatsuki member "You make me _sick_, this is so-"

"Unfair?" Orochimaru chuckled before staring at Kisame with an amused look in his amber eyes "We're _ninja, _we don't _play fair_!"

Kisame lunged. Crimson blood splattered across the tiles.

* * *

One battle down...one more to go, hopefully this was a different take on a overused plotline... And hey look! More references to the Suna mission! Watch them as they fly by!

And just because I feel kind of awesome Imma Gonna go through everyone of you all that reviewed ...because everyone loves seeing their names in Fanfiction...

1arigato Seishuru Magni MegaB LanaIshi Lazaros (Why did you review again? :/) afd234 ultron Dea7hly Jes7er Right Hand Of Jashin Jashin's Accomplice Aerowind Kinomoto Conflict Tachi Kagahara (All Itachi scenes belong to her!) Arch Zell InARealPickle (for teaching me grammar!) geetac Demonkid KC TheSargent97 lindon2 buzzbumble darwinsito (My spanish still sucks :( ) Kamui Nephlite Dreamweaver Mirar (I LOVE those books!) Acedia1307 weixuan18 xaxaxi taintedlegacy Shadow65 Lord Ezra'eil Raptor2001 foxyswordsman SpeeDemon Liger01CrystalCipher Pjokstr (I never said I was sane...) DarkDesh randall2204 Inugo Kurosaki LbcLostKid christina Knives91 Almores (for telling me to tone down on the japanese..that I listened to) League of Sinners (Smile) e Taliath (for giving me a kick in the nearest direction of a Beta) sniper757 JNottle HermesUnbound (for correcting how I spell beggi-bige- beginning) dupel Kyouzou CellarDoor1186 St. Alicon superninjamonkey TenchiSaWaDa (I only realise now that I've been reading your fics...) SEG-CISR greywizard-dumblemort ChrisVittal Illusion King Joined Forces shadow patronus twilightserius Fuyuriku rexr water goddess 19 Get-Lost gunslinger iris anon (I regret even trying this now...just ten more chapters to go!) StaplersBreak jjones987 xxnarufanxx MadnessLover Persnikitty moonray9 nwspor (woot indeed my friend...woot indeed) Studebaker1960 chaRM (consider that daze snapped!) buddhabro2 lordamnesia Raptor2001 MalystryxII Broken Sexed Up Bloody Kitten (the best names of ffnet ever!)piratepenguin666 psychotic kitsune Dragon Soul Weaver OverLordRevan BloodySeraphim (No...no it has not :D) MadnessLover Getsuga Tensou ...(My shoulders they BURN!) Tainted Uchiha (Fear my powerful, original jutsus) Maxi tedlay Obsidian Fireheart Gasanechi (Never!) The North Pole DarkRavie Shadowmage Infiltrator Tulipsprite ching965 crashburnr niceasice Broken Flavors Vulc10900 Yokura crimsonkyuubi (I see another fan of capital letters!) narutokakashijiraiya13 Yamamato Anon who reviewed 2010-04-22 (I consider that a challenge) tomoyohime8 Zeroasalimit (although by this time I had a Beta, you're still welcome to tell me when I mess up!) harrylover101 spaz-tastic panda Book Mad TJ Seerss GintsukiKyu Okiro Zangetsu Requiem Failing Mentality Stiehl mri1 Jinsokuichi what the? (Yes...once again I messed up the chapter -_-") Infernal Maelstrom ( I apologize for my rant...you were right) Anake14 jolteonforever (I much prefer flareon!) mackjav otakuzen plz dont let...(This fic die? Never!) FiOeX T.D. Sugoi Lord Purity Maiden of Books oldman543 Chris (I'm glad :) )Lady Artemist (you used the word awesome...and therefore by default you are too) Muses RogueNya xfighter4 (meh no chance) pyro357 dumdeedum Cain DarkRavie TheHumanWiki Lainana (I may have already listed you...but that comment made me choke on my own laughter...) apocalyps24 Vahzred (your comment fed my dream...that is all I have to say to you) BloodySeraphim

Okay...so after a while the names blend together...I probably repeated a couple of names once or thrice...

sugoi fyre Lexor beloveddaughteroftheking NinjaTeddy grey-shadow-horse aniNoyesno Kole-chan link the hitman OpheliaPurple (You stay awesome too!) Bloodgalore Nostalgic Beauty HarrySlytherinson Electrified by Evil (if you still read I'm sure you'll look foreword to my future plans!) Inumaru12 (patience...on ffnet? :O Unheard of!) lostintimeandspace Harteramo Xtremo3000 me Bananavamp Akira Stridder IReadOnly (the first thing I did was to see whether your user name was true) RuningInCircles (your dp wins..no pun intended...) Piffsheep Fritter Lazaros (:| That's all I can say Laz...P.S Hai! ^_^) yesshe-257378 Darak (Note: any words longer than my finger nail are duly ignored and classed as win, your argument is invalid) Noyesno (yes?) Tenraku-Ichi Akuya the Kitsune InARealPickle (I can't even count how many times you've reviewed...it doesn't help I can't count past four, but I deleted the bit that made you cry...if that helps?) crazymexican Wolfkun Maiden of Books bashking GreatGoogilyMoogily Rune Dela Vega chaosfire999 Lazy Historian (Gee looking back on chapter 14...many people seemed sad to see Tora go, we had wrist-cutting, crying, emo-corners and a threat from Arch Zell that he was gonna eat me if I didn't revive her...) Shin Sora Nadeshiko ( I like your ANBU stories!) Yuki Niwa BYoshi1993 (Happy Valentines Day!) imewatcher Marvolo-Madara oldman543 14thEternityNightMare that one chicken LeDale aurla0 cloystreng Julian Carax (I'm glad you enjoyed the omake!) watchingtherain1 54842 raia (I'm glad you agree with my panda-snack views) naruto7332 mackjav 121 Madame Penguin HikariNoTenshi-San Nemo2002 dragonlance07 Shigyakuteki Hyousha Lazaros (yes Laz you get cookies) Hanzo of the Salamander Umbra8191 Prince Raistlin cyber viper42 ogihcI ikasoruK Piper Julian Piper Julian Demeterr MadgirlSBA Itachi-Senpai The Ice Mistress sam110 Hiding From My Lies .me R-dude crimson-sage Malix2 Dharles Carwin (I see what you did there...¬_¬) Dragon Soul Weaver (I suddenly realize you are no longer anonymous!) Van der Ayn amu156 lilsilverphoenix ruhiko PuppetBoy (I'm glad you like the Ocs, I worry people hate them) SemenDemon (...) wrathuponsinners BlackButterfly00 KThxBai PencilControler irezel PennyShort (of a pound?) librarycat9 Clayr411 Hiyami .- Gemcraft (No really I love you too) Josh Maxwell Smoochynose THORN29535 Shady N00B JashinistRaven coolprettyangel2006 buddhabro2 (You reference to 'woman, get in the kitchen and make me a sammich!' reference should be offensive...but I laughed anyway...) Ten Squared realworldiscruel aznblackhowling Allcoolnameshavebeentaken (please get an account with this name...then it would be true) Rise Against713 A Midsummer Night's Dream ( I would quote Shakespeare in response...but I would only end up embarrassing myself) MadaMag and finally FaerysWing !


	20. Distraction on the Roof

Ah yes...updated-ness. In the next three months you'll find that I'm gonna update a little quicker than I have recently, on the account of I've broken my leg. And no...not just my leg, but also my ankle and every bone in my foot. Never again will I be able to walk through airport security without being stopped... but anyway, the docs say that I'm not allowed to walk on it in case the pin in my ankle snaps, so most likely you can expect the end of this arc and a little extra on the side by February time :D

And on a completely different note, if you want to listen to the soundtracks I was listening to, make a Youtube queue of the following: Two Steps From Hell - Endless Night, Groove Addicts - Exodus, Groove Addicts - The Crusade, Groove Addicts - They've Broken Through, Audio Network - Mars and Alpha Dog Music - Battlefield.

Quick synopsis, because I hate it when can't remember what happened and who's where and doing what...

Naruto's escaped from his prison after rescuing Hayate from certain death, he came across Kensuki and Sasuke trying to fight and helped reseal the Ichibi... The Sand Siblings retreated from the war and Naruto's attempting to re-enter Konoha.

Orochimaru has ressurected Itachi's family to help in the fight on the roof top of the Chunin Exam stadium, Kisame entered the fight.

/End ridiculously long AN

* * *

_**Several Years Before**_

_The Hokage quickly sped the pen across the blank sheet of paper, trailing black inky lines across the page. Moonlight from the window made the bone white paper glow eerily. _ _Fear had settled itself at the very bottom of his stomach, making it hard to concentrate. His teeth rested lightly on his bottom lip, a clear sign to those who knew him well that he was being overwhelmed by stress._ _The pen nib snapped and shot off into the shadow-filled corner of his office, what remained of the pen in his hand sprayed midnight coloured ink all over the half-filled sheet and desk._ _He cursed and flung the rest of the pen into the same corner in irritation._

"_Is there a problem here Hokage-sama?"_

_The Hokage refused to admit he was surprised by the appearance of that eerie white mask from within the shadowy corner, but he _had_ noticed that the boy was now able to sneak up on him on occasions, which made the Hokage regret his decision to allow the boy to have the responsibility of his safety. Gathering his frazzled thoughts and calming his irritation, Hiruzen replied with a shaky smile._

"_Kitsune-taichou."_

"_Not you too old man." The boy sighed irritably, leaving his cloak of shadows in preference of the light from the Hokage's candles, which cast a soft, glowing pool on the desk and calming ripples on the ceiling above "I seem to have an _odd_ feeling that the exam was _rigged_..."_

_Hiruzen knew that a slender blond eyebrow would have been raised in accompaniment to that comment, but it was hidden by the smooth, porcelain mask, newly decorated with iconic marks of an Anbu Captain. Those red crescents that almost encircled the twin depthless holes of black._

"_Exam? Rigged?" The Hokage chuckled softly "perhaps that just goes to show that we should have given you the exam sooner..."_

_The boy had already perched himself on the cleanest edge of the stained desk, staring out of the large windows from which you could almost see the entire village. Both of the shinobi were quiet for a few minutes and the Hokage picked up a new pen and fresh sheet of paper._

"_Naruto?"_

_The boy tilted his head to the side, allowing one impossibly blue eye, hidden in shadows, to connect with the figure behind the desk, but the boy continued to face out of the window, the light from the moon sending half-shadows skittering across his mask._

"_Hokage-sama?" the boy acknowledged quietly, respectfully. The old man could barely ever fault his manners, but he was often left with a sense of confusion when he thought about the matter. With such shameless teachers as Jiraiya, Kakashi... and regrettably himself, where had they ever come from?_

"_Did you read the mission brief that I sent you?"_

_The boy sighed wearily, running a pale, and the Hokage noticed with a wince, scarred hand through his hair. His fingers trailed to the fastenings of the porcelain mask and carefully removed it from his face and set it upon the old desk with an almost silent 'click'._

"_Need you ask?" Naruto asked, his eyes closing momentarily as he allowed himself a second of weakness, night shifts were always the most difficult to complete. "When have I ever ignored a mission brief delivered by Touhimaru himself?"_

_The old Hokage chuckled as a flicker of annoyance crossed the boys' face; it was a rare occurrence for Naruto to show emotion when wearing his 'mission face'. However this only seemed to make the boy even more annoyed. He watched as the scrawny fingers reached unconsciously for the familiarity of the mask._ _Inside, Sarutobi smiled, he was glad that the boys' spirit wasn't broken by the world that he had been thrust into so suddenly._

"_Why?"_

_That one word, so full of curiosity, startled the Hokage out of his reverie. His cushioned comfort was suddenly shattered like broken glass; he had known that this question would be asked, everyone did at some point... why did they do it? Day after day? He had seen it brewing under Naruto's calm facade._

"_Why what?"_

"_The Head of Anbu is a hard sought after position, it's only the very best of the best, a person who has given up everything to defend the village and the Hokage..." Naruto's emotionless expression disappeared in a blink of an eye, and was replaced by one of sadness, his blue eyes snapping away from the Hokage as to not show his show of emotion "Why would the Kazekage want to kill him?"_

"_It's none of our business... we aren't supposed to ask questions about missions."_

"_Not even when it could lead to the rise or fall of a hidden village?" Naruto asked, springing lightly to his feet without a noise, a difficult feat with such old floorboards like those that lined the floors of the Hokage tower, in seconds he had securely replaced the mask over his troubled features._

_The Hokage's face was grim._

"_Especially then Naruto-kun... especially then."_

* * *

"Well, look here." Orochimaru purred in demented satisfaction, his sickly, pale face only inches away from Kisame's "Your blood _is_ red like the rest of ours..."

"You sound overly _surprised_ for such a renowned master of the human body..." Kisame growled, his eyes narrowed in a mixture of both fury and pain he was attempting to ignore. How had a squirt like this even managed to _touch_ him? Let alone injure him like this?

'_Perhaps Itachi isn't the only one who's out of shape at the moment...'_

Speaking of the man, Itachi himself had yet to budge an inch; instead he was regarding the situation with little interest, his dark eyes completely devoid of any emotion, no indication that he had even seen the blows that had transpired only seconds ago in front of his very eyes. At least these were partial resurrections...Orochimaru had oddly forgone the last part of the jutsu. The part where he would bind them to the world of the living through specially prepared seals, this meant that the Uchiha would be easy to kill as any human, they would not stand back up once they had fallen.

Kisame had lunged forwards, attempting to cleave the Snake Sannin in half with his fearsome chakra eating blade but had been intercepted by Shisui mid blow. The blue skinned man now had a kunai lodged deep in his left shoulder, however it had been meant for his throat as a final blow. Kisame had only just managed to move in time to divert its' course.

"Cocky bastard." Kisame spat in defiance, but Shisui remained calm and readied another blade to throw "Never try a fatal blow at first unless your pray isn't worth it."

Kisame found that attack to be..._offending_, he wasn't used to being shrugged off so casually by someone he had never met. Perhaps it was an Uchiha thing then? He remembered Itachi doing something similar when they had first been paired together. Shisui made ready to finish off what he had started by reaching for the kunai, but Kisame leapt back towards the two _sane_ Konoha-nins, who were both thankfully on his side. The enemy weren't looking two good on the sanity scale, with three reanimated corpses and an equivalent of a mad scientist.

He glanced warily to his surroundings; he wouldn't pass it by the Sannin to hide some more of his lackeys in the roof tiles... If only Itachi would do something! He felt like he owed it to his friend to decide what he wanted to do, if only the man would move, instead of standing so silently nearby! Orochimaru spat something in Fugaku's direction, his pale features contorted in frustration and annoyance as both he and Mitoko sprang forwards to accompany Shisui, who still had the kunai that had been intended to finish Kisame.

The Kiri-nin growled, preparing his chakra to lash out against the undead beings, he wasn't so sure how though, it wasn't clear if physical attacks would work on them, or even if Samehada would be able to draw any chakra from their revived coils. He wasn't too sure if he liked the ideas of having _dead chakra_ circulating within his body. The blue skinned man suppressed a shudder that ran the length of his spine.

The Hokage had yet to remove his eyes from the form of his ex-pupil. His watery grey eyes were sad, but he knew that it had to happen. He had allowed the boy far too much freedom with his power and this had been the outcome, where had it changed? Where along the way had that young, sweet, orphaned boy changed into _this_? His _heart_ refused to see the similarities between Naruto and Orochimaru, but his _mind_ did that for him. Was Naruto going to end up like this?

Surely not... The boy had always been fiercely loyal towards Konoha and even now, when he was no longer an official, registered shinobi, he was loyal enough to stay in Konoha and care for the Genin of Team 7; he also risked his safety to save Hayate's life. Orochimaru had _also_ been extremely loyal in his younger years, going up against anything that the other elemental countries could throw at him during the Great Shinobi wars in the name of Konoha, to keep her safe. He had also once expressed his desire to become Hokage. The comparisons did not stop at their loyalty, but their lack of family life, their gifted abilities in almost every aspect that was required of them to serve Konoha and their lethal single-mindedness on the battlefield. Hiruzen remembered the last words he had heard Naruto speak before he had been imprisoned. The ghost of those words were accompanied by a stab of pain in his chest, which left him fleetingly short of breath. '_You can go back to pretending that your village is as pure as crisp snow... Perhaps it's time someone told you just how black the soul of Konoha truly is.'_

Was Naruto rebelling against Konoha or forcing him into action? He cut his thoughts short, the Uchiha were reforming again and with a wave of his hand, his adamantine staff was within his grasp, ready for battle. '_Let's settle this, once and for all Enma.'_ His eyes collided with the form of Orochimaru. It was his duty to eradicate this blackness from the earth. Kisame was suffering badly, protecting Itachi from the oncoming blows and he readied himself for the next onslaught of blows.

"Leave it Kisame." That voice...Kisame turned to face the source and breathed a sigh of relief.

"You _finally_ decided to get serious?"

Itachi's eyes blazed into familiar red pinwheels and then blurred to the crimson of the Mangekyo, he stepped forwards but he showed no signs of slipping into the Uchiha style of Taijutsu that was perfectly displayed by the three Uchiha readied in front of him.

"Traitors' eyes." Shisui spat, but Itachi simply ignored him, giving no sign that he had heard the man, he was too busy watching the figure he had once called his father.

"You seem to think..." Itachi moved his gaze to that of his tormentor, Orochimaru, who wavered slightly under that terrifying gaze "That I would have a problem killing them again."

"You cried when they died." Orochimaru grinned, eyes shining in malicious glee as he ran his forked tongue over yellowing teeth "You can't lie to me."

The Uchiha flourished his hands, and almost by magic, the silver edged kunai appeared within them, the lightning in the distance casting an eerie glow on their surface each time it appeared in the sky.

"You chose the village over your own family!" Fugaku growled, his eyes also glowing red in anger "It was your duty-!"

"Duty?" Itachi chuckled darkly, tilting his head to the side like a curious dog but his eyes slid off into the distance as he repeated the word once more, though it was softer, almost as if he was talking to himself "Duty." For a moment Kisame thought that the living Uchiha was going to space out again, which would leave him to the mercy of his revived family members, but they were oddly captivated by their killers' silence and remained still themselves. Itachi's eyes surveyed the three dead members of his clan, but he couldn't bear to look at his mother in the eyes.

"_Remember I love you Itachi-kun!"_

"_How was school today?" _a smile lit up in his past memories, like a lamp on the very darkest of winter nights _"Did you do well?"_

"_See? I knew you could do it!"_

"_This is your brother...His name's Sasuke."_

"_So you got promoted? I can't believe my little boy is so grown up!"_

_All that time_ she was planning to overthrow the village that she had sworn to protect... was it his father that poisoned her delicate mind? Or was it the Uchiha's overuse of 'duty'? Did she believe it was her duty to stand by her husband, rather than the village? It didn't matter, because she was dead. The reanimated corpse in front of him might have her memories, her thoughts, her dreams but his mother was long dead to him. "Duty... the Uchiha's duty?" Itachi's eyes grew colder "I think I'll pass..."

"He was already a traitor Fugaku; don't expect him to change..." Shisui growled, his chakra lashing about wildly.

"_Well done Itachi."_

"_Good shot... how did you manage it?"_

"_I don't think I've ever seen someone so talented..."_

"_Nice to see you're in my team this year kid."_

"_Hopes and dreams?" _chuckles, suppressed, were they on a mission? _"I don't know."_

Memories.

He allowed himself a brief second to ready himself for the upcoming task. It wouldn't be hard; it was a continuation of a six year old mission. They would all fall to his blade, that's what he had been born to do... Protect Konoha. Protect the Hokage. Protect Sasuke.

* * *

Naruto stared at the large amounts of smoke and rubble in streets, littered with corpses and struggling bodies. He'd rarely seen an invasion so messy, or on such an overly large scale... There was no way the Genin could manage this, he would have to take them to the nearest safe zone. They were both sleeping now, after Sasuke had begun to struggle in Naruto's grasp, attempting to fight the blond off with what pitiful chakra he still possessed and Kensuki's relentless questions had become far too repetitive and mind-numbing. It was also far easier to manoeuvre. He carefully avoided the areas with a higher concentration of enemies, choosing to stick to the tiny backstreets and areas that had yet to be discovered by the enemy, which were few and far in between but he was thankful to the lack of civilians. They must have been evacuated relatively quickly.

Ahead he could hear a few voices, he guessed around 3 Chunin and a Jounin by the chakra control they possessed. Allies? Enemies?

Naruto dragged both of the boys behind a corner of a back alley that stretched between two high rise buildings in the poorer side of Konoha, _uncomfortably_ close to the prison where he'd stayed, and cautiously stalked towards the mouth of the backstreet, using each nook and cranny to hide as he made his way closer to the voices. Spatterings of the conversation could be heard amongst the torrential rain, and Naruto hunkered down behind an old sofa that smelt of _cat_.

"We...Find him..."

"Looked everywhere..."

"He's long gone by now."

Naruto growled in irritation, was fate always this ironic for everyone...or did it just single him out in particular? Kuromeru...his codename always came to mind far before his birth name. Raidou? Was he still searching for him? He took a quick glance out into the street, careful not to disturb any of the refuse that littered the area around him as he did so. The blond sighed at what his eyes saw. It was the Chunin from earlier, the four that had been in charge of the chakra barrier that had encased him during his _delightful _stay at the prison. He vaguely recognised the other three Chunin from patrolling duties around Konoha's street...but although they had been doing what they had been ordered to do by the Hokage, Naruto wasn't sure how long it would be before he could look at them without a sense of distaste.

He really could hold grudges when he wanted to.

The rain was starting to ease up, but only a little. If the rain continued like it did, the two Genin's body temperature would begin to drop dangerously low, a side effect that he had originally ignored. A stupid mistake. He should have used a restraining Genjutsu instead. This meant, however, that he had to find shelter within allied territory, to keep them dry and safe. Raidou and his squad were an ideal option, but clearly, even amongst the confusion, they were intent on recapturing him. He sat very still for a moment, listening closely to what was happening between the four men, carefully hidden behind the abandoned sofa.

"So what was that boy to you Namiashi?" the voice was familiar, but not familiar enough to place a body to it. Raidou had chosen to ignore the question of the first man, but this had spiked the interest of the others, reducing them to hyperactive teenagers.

"Oh come on Rai!" This voice Naruto _could_ place, but only by the familiar way that he said 'Rai'; a nickname only one man had been allowed to use. The dark haired, chain smoker Yamashiro Aoba.

"Yeah Taichou! Tell!"

So Raidou was the Captain of the barrier squad? Odd...Naruto had never put him down as a Barrier type.

'_I suppose things do change over time...'_ Naruto thought to himself. Making his mind up, with the distinct lack of enemy troops or civilian casualties, this would have to do. Shuriken spun under his fingertips, he would have to be as quick as he possibly could to avoid friendly fire and capture the Captain of the squad in order to gain their attention, but it never hurt to throw useless metal about. He never had liked shuriken, they lacked the comforting weight of the kunai and never struck true in extreme weather conditions, like torrential rain or wailing wind, they were good for distractions.

_Give him a good kunai any day._

Without pausing he pushed forwards, releasing the shuriken towards the metal lampposts and grates that lined the wider street. The flash of bright sparks and ear-splitting screeches that accompanied the projectile weapons gained the attention of the unprepared Chunin. By that time they were already under attack.

Naruto had entered their protective formation, ducked underneath a reflexive lash out from one of the men and grabbed a surprised Raidou by the front of his Chunin flak jacket, causing the man to stumble backwards and fall to the ground. It all happened in a matter of seconds, and by the time the Chunin had blinked back towards their commander; he had a slightly rusted kunai at his throat.

"Nobody moves a muscle or Namiashi here gets it." Naruto growled, eyeing the other Chunin with an almost feral glint in his stormy blue eyes "Drop your weapons."

The Chunin dutifully allowed their weapons to plummet to the floor, splashing amongst the puddles of rain water that had begun to flood the uneven street. Naruto noticed that they had even removed their hidden weapons, usually located within their sleeves or lining of the Chunin must be important to them if they wanted to save his life so badly. The man had a dazed look in his brown eyes as he looked up into the youthful face above him and Naruto almost smacked his forehead in with the rounded end of the kunai because of that look. Like he had seen a ghost. Thinking back it, almost everyone he had known and no longer spoke to believed he had died, he supposed he kind of _was_ a ghost. Naruto shot the stunned man a sharp glare, prompting him to speak, to tell his men to stand down, that for a brief moment they were allies. No words came from the slightly parted lips of Namiashi Raidou. Naruto growled, subconsciously moving the kunai slightly closer to the delicate skin of the Chunnin's throat, causing the rest of the squad to prepare to spring on the boy to attack.

"Stuck for words Kuromeru?" Naruto remarked, his voice flat and emotionless, a voice that produced a visible reaction from the downed Chunin. "Call them off already."

The rest of the Chunin were stunned with the familiarity with which their previous captive had addressed their captain, adding to the mystery of this already curious event. They noted the use of a codename, which meant links to Anbu or Torture and Interrogation. Their respect for their captain suddenly grew a little more.

"Kurome-!" Naruto began, but was silenced by Raidou's voice whispering.

"I thought you were dead."

Naruto closed his mouth, tightening his lips together as his mind processed what his previous subordinate had said. He grinned a little as he replied. "I was, for a long while."

Raidou nodded in understanding, before he turned back towards his squad, voice and face of steel replacing his previous astonishment. He told the squad not to attack and with a questioning look towards Naruto, who was cautiously standing to his feet in order to cause no alarm, he told them to retrieve their weapons from the ground.

"They're gonna go rusty now." Aoba whined, attempting to dry the kunai on his already sopping shirt sleeve. Eventually he gave up and replaced the kunai in his weapons pouch, when he looked up from the pouch he finally noted the four blank faced stares he was receiving. His face flushed red in embarrassment.

"I'm sure you know by now that we're under attack from both the hidden villages of Oto and Suna." Naruto started, pausing a moment to allow for a response "Have you any idea where the nearest safe point is?"

The silence that followed his question answered it for him, though this annoyed him, usually barrier squads had a sensor ninja as it was almost a requirement, it seems as if this group had hastily been given the task of maintain the barrier around his cell.

"Give us a good reason to take _you_, a threat to Konoha itself, to a safe point? What are you planning to do?"

Naruto was about to deliver a scathing remark, about rank and respect, but he stopped himself short as painful memories caused him to grit his teeth together. He was getting far too caught up in this; he had only planned to get to Orochimaru and kill the snake. The Chunins almost took a step back as a dark aura momentarily surrounded the young boy or was he really as young as he seemed? Their captain was giving the boy enough respect to warrant a Jounin status.

"I have casualties, caught up in a fight with the Suna Jinchuuriki known as Sabaku no Gaara and they're only Genin, they didn't fare as well as they had hoped to and in these conditions, they aren't going to remain in a stable condition for much longer."

"How do we know you're not lying?" Aoba said, his short words displaying his obvious discomfort with the situation. Naruto understood the need for such care, after all he was a criminal of Konoha and it _was_ a war time situation.

"Two streets back on your right, behind the corner at the very end of that street, you'll find them there." With a fleeting look and an affirmative shake of his head, Raidou sent the old, gruff looking Chunin scurrying along with baby-faced Chunin boy tagging along. It only took a few minutes before they returned with the two unconscious Genin slung unceremoniously over their shoulders.

"They still breathing?" Naruto tried to keep calm, not betraying anything but the cold emotion of necessity, yet cursing inwardly when Raidou sent him an amused look.

"They're okay, but they are in definite need of medical attention." The young Chunin said, carefully checking a limp wrist belonging to Kensuki. "This boy most of all."

The oldest man there, verging into his early forties, broke the silence as he spoke out. "From what I can tell, there's an allied group that's only around a mile away, close to the main street." He man, with his dark hair marred by patches of lighter grey betraying his age stopped for a second before turning to face Naruto "I assume you know the coordinates of Konoha?"

Naruto nodded quietly before answering.

"I know."

"I had a feeling you would; it's in the south-south-east quarter of Konoha between coordinates 255 and 270." The man told them, before continuing onwards in his speech "It should take us about ten minutes to get there."

"What should we do when we get there?" Aoba asked, his distrustful eyes lingering on Naruto much smaller frame with annoyance "By right you're a criminal and should be detained."

Naruto shrugged.

"Do as you like." He muttered sarcastically as he rolled his shoulder, rewarded with an audible click and a wince of pain "Although there are far more important things going on to worry about little old me."

"You three go on ahead." Raidou ordered calmly, as if there was no urgent situation arising around them "I shall talk to-"

Raidou stopped himself. He had always called the boy 'Captain', or 'Kitsune' both respectful and appropriate titles, calling the boy by his name made his skin crawl. He stammered for a second, much to the amusement of his squad and by Aoba expression he just _knew_ that when all off this was over he was going to have to explain himself to the overly expressive man over a stiff drink.

"Uzumaki." He finished wearily, noticing that even the boy himself was showing signs of amusement with a single eyebrow quirked upwards in silent laughter.

"Y-yes Captain." The vice-captain chuckled, throwing a jaunty salute high into the air before disappearing into the murky greyness of Konoha's rain-ridden streets. As soon as they had gone Raidou turned to Naruto and asked.

"What we do with you depends on what you did to end up _there_." hell hole. Naruto stared at the scarred man for a second, blinking slowly with a blank expression. The cat was out of the bag now, there was nothing, nobody to protect from the truth any longer.

"I overheard the plans for the Invasion." Naruto could see the questions bubbling beneath the surface, but he carried on regardless "One escaped." Kabuto, the puppet "The other attempted to kill a Konoha shinobi, I killed him instead. True to Suna fashion, they attempted to cover it up and ended up imprisoning me."

'_True to Suna fashion'_ They both relived experiences that they would have preferred not to have remembered. The assassination of Nohara Yarimaki.

"I...see." Raidou nodded, his entire body still oddly tense "All a misunderstanding then?"

Naruto shrugged once more, before replying, almost like a petulant child determined to make his questioning as difficult as he possibly could. "Depends on how you look at it, I did kill him."

Raidou sighed before seeming to grow taller and he growled. "I'm not sure what your problem is, but I'm pretty sure he's not the only person that you've killed."

Naruto had the decency to look a little sheepish, his eyes turning towards the floor as he murmured an almost silent. "Sorry 'bout that."

Raidou silently cursed all the known deities. What had he done to offend them? Why was he always stuck with the emotionally dysfunctional team mates? "Come on." The dark haired man grumbled, gathering his chakra together, ready to sprint after his remaining team members, he needed a good run to clear his head "If we start now we can arrive at the same time as your precious Genin."

Any retort made by the blond boy was lost as the piercing, cold wind rushed past his ears.

* * *

Itachi leapt forward, all his concentration focused on the tallest of the three figures. He would kill this false representation of his father, he had killed the man many years ago and it would be no trouble to do it again. '_It's to protect Sasuke, protect Konoha.'_

In the few seconds that it took to cover the distance between them, Itachi's thoughts wondered back to the grinning Sannin. The man knew firsthand how strong Itachi was with Genjutsu, how quickly he could subdue and kill a man without planning his methods beforehand. So why had he given him this..._distraction_? His insides turned cold. A _distraction_. Orochimaru knew his opponents well, far better than an enemy ever should know his opponents. He knew that Itachi would want to face his revived family alone, but Kisame would jump in to the fray first, in order to protect Itachi from _reality_. If Kisame was badly wounded, it would put him out of the equation. The injury to his shoulder was looking pretty bad, since he had taken to letting his arm fall limply by his side as the blood began to seep through the material of his jacket. In terms of opponents, only the Hokage was left.

'_The quarrel is between us Sarutobi! They do not need to be involved in this!'_

Itachi suddenly realised what Orochimaru had been planning all along. To take out the Hokage whilst he was distracted by the _ghosts_ of his murdered family, with little resistance from an injured Kisame. He needed to finish the Uchihas off, as quickly as he possibly could in order to aid the Hokage in his battle against Orochimaru. '_Am I really so weak?'_His fingers flipped through the hand seals with mind-numbing agility as the chakra roared within his coils.

"Katon."

At his almost silent words, Mikoto's eyes widened in fear, but Itachi chose to ignore her reaction in favour of continuing his attack, mostly aimed at his father. The deceased head of the Uchiha spun to face his son, his murderer, and also raised his hands to form a jutsu in retaliation, but they both knew that the collision of the two Fire Jutsu were likely to cause a far larger explosion, engulfing them all.

_Snake_

_Dragon _

_Rat_

Itachi remembered when he had once admired Fugaku for his katon jutsu prowess; after all he was the previous head of the Uchiha clan. He also remembered it had been around that time that he had joined up at the Academy. He resisted the urge to reminisce further. He thought he had buried these feelings years ago. Shisui darted into action, an action so familiar that Itachi was once dragged back into his memories, of a time when Shisui was preparing to attack _with_ him...not against him. His own fingers blurred into the final seal, the tiger, and he opened his lips to shout out the final part of the jutsu, but he inwardly cursed as it came out as a sorrowful whisper.

"Hosenka no jutsu."

The first part of the trap was set. Shisui and Fugaku cursed, abandoning their unfinished jutsu in favour of dodging the oncoming fireballs, each hiding a chakra controlled shuriken within their fiery depths. An old and well know trick by now, but it was only the first step.

"Fuuton: Fusajin no jutsu."

Step two. A wave of wind burst from his mouth, fanning the remaining flames of his previous jutsu until they merged into a towering wall of blistering heat. He released a few more shuriken in their direction as they gradually disappeared from his sight. He took the time to glance around to check on his Hokage and Kisame, who were blade to blade with a grinning Orochimaru, who held the glistening Kusanagi within his pale, clammy hands. The snake Sannin caught his gaze and his smiled widened. Itachi twisted to the side and reached above his head, grabbing the wrist and sharply twisting it until he heard it snap. The kunai it had been holding dropped into his free hand. Without a second glance he threw the body sideways and buried the kunai up to its hilt into the jugular of his opponent. He tossed the body out of range, hearing it thud faintly against the barriers that encased them in that hellish place. He didn't even look at the body that he had killed, he knew it already, he had killed it once before.

"You would so carelessly throw away your so called _brother_ once again?" Fugaku sneered, areas of burnt, red flesh cracking as he spoke, but his pride, or lack of real body didn't allow him to express the pain that he must have been feeling. "I imagine that you were well practised after killing Sasuke too."

Itachi stopped.

The dark-eyed Uchiha woman inhaled deeply, her eye softening in sudden realisation. Her husband was still clueless, thinking that his son's reaction was merely some form of twisted guilt.

"He's still alive..." Mikoto whispered, the blisters across her face swelling one eye shut, but one single eye continued gazing off into the distance, over the ruins of a burning Konoha. "Isn't he?"

Itachi didn't trust himself to actually respond to her. She wasn't real, she wasn't his mother, this wasn't the woman who had sung him to sleep, or gently brushed his hair from his forehead when he had fallen ill. She wasn't real. He nodded, and felt himself cringe as a small smile placed itself upon her face. Everything about them was too familiar to him. Her smiles, Shisui's fighting style and Fugaku's stern looks as he watched on disapprovingly. Not a moment he wanted to reach out and touch the woman in front of him, just to see whether she _was _real or not.

"He's lying to you Mikoto." Fugaku snarled, the red of the Mangekyou intensifying with the pure fury that he exuded "Liar."

The moment shattered and Itachi sprung into motion once more. The flames had not kept them down for long enough, he had planned on having more time to prepare his final step. People said that Amaterasu was flawless, that once it had been brought out into the material world it was unavoidable. It did, however, have a single weakness. If it was the clothing that caught fire, then the article of clothing could be removed and then Amaterasu would have to be cast once more. There were many patches of raw, blistered skin on show after the amplified katon jutsu. Now all he needed was to temporarily blind them.

Easily done.

With an almost careless flick of his wrist, orbs of light flew from his fingertips, erupting in front of their faces with an ear splitting screech, quickly followed by a rumble of thunder in the distance and the clash of metal as the fight behind him continued. He rammed his eyes shut, before slowly cracking open his right eye, wincing as the prolong stab of pain felt like it reached deep with his skull. The blood dribbled down his cheek like tears. That was all the grief that he would allow himself to feel as the spot of black flame filled his vision, each detail so visibly clear in his mind and once again every moment was burned into his memories. He remembered it all with crystal clear clarity, every moment.

Even as his father fell to the ground, the chaotic black flames leaping from his body in chaotic spirals, his voice crying out as if undergoing torture. '_But he is._' A small voice in the back of his mind whispered in amusement '_This is torture._'

His mother was still on her feet, the flames consuming her clothes, her hair, her flesh, yet she still stood not making a single sound. That one, single dark eye continued to stare at him. His father was silent now, but Mikoto still stood, but they both knew it was only seconds until she too would fall to the consuming flames of darkness. What remained of her lips opened silently, mouthing three words ever so clearly, she knew that they would be etched upon his memory for eternity and a single tear trickled from her eye as she collapsed to the floor. Itachi forced his eye shut, wiping the drying blood away from his eye with the back of his hand as the words of his mother replayed through his head.

'_Look after him.'_

'_I will.'_ He promised himself, spinning on his heel to aid the Hokage with his opponent '_I will.'_ He felt weary, as if he had been running for many days and many nights without stopping, but he steeled himself. One _final_ jutsu then he could rest and then he could see Sasuke again. Although he highly doubted that the younger boy would want to see him again, not after the way in which they had last parted company.

'_This will be your last hour Orochimaru.'_

* * *

_:'|_

Well I was reading through this and thinking... hey wait I don't think I've ever really written down the translations of the Original Jutsus...although don't quote me on them, my Japanese ability is 0 without Freedict translators.

Naruto's

Fuuton: Mitssu, Kuchi, Uma - Literally translated to - Wind Element :Three, Mouth, Horse - Or Three Mouthed Horse (Used In Previous Chapter)

Fuuton: Akubi Kachuu - Wind Element: Yawning Vortex (First used against Kakashi in the 'Battle For Ramen', If I win? Chapter)

Tora's

Ninpou: Senkaito no jutsu - Ninja Art: War Thread Technique (First an only use in 'Omoide' Chapter 8, when Tora 'finds' Naruto training with bunshin)


	21. The Beast at our Door

Well here's Chapter 21!

Yeah I know, I promised chapters cause I thought my spare time would be full of sunshine and buttercups... two operations and six months later I've only just managed to get my life back in order... only to be confronted with the Naruto Cannon plot fluctuating between reasonable and pretty crap :| ffnet throwing a non-uploading tantrum and _tons_ of _bloody_ exams!

Sucks to be me :3

Anyways, here's what happened last chapter:

* * *

_We had a brief memory of the days before the infamous Suna mission._

_Naruto and Raidou are making their way towards friendly territory, where Sasuke and Kensuki are being treated after their battle with the Ichibi. _

_Kisame and the Hokage were injured and the Sannin resurrected Shisui, Motoko and Fugaku in order to win the battle. The Uchiha heir was forced to kill them all once again and Itachi has vowed to end Orochimaru once and for all..._

* * *

Naruto spent most of the trip lagging a few steps behind the scarred Chunin, his eyes downcast yet his feet didn't miss their target. He wondered what would happen when they finally managed to get back behind Konoha's lines of defense, would he still be put back behind bars? He found that he just couldn't bring himself to care. An exploding tag fizzled past his ear, sailing into the abandoned street below, yet he was too deep in thought to register the blinding flash or flying debris. Raidou wasn't oblivious however and chose to curse softly under his breath as they sprinted onwards in the hope that the creator of the tag wouldn't choose them as their next victims.

It was only two sectors away and Naruto could see the imposing block of green roofed apartments that served as the area boundary... or what remained of it. The cream walls, usually covered with childish posters about new toys or upcoming movies or the next in the series of Icha Icha book, were charred and smoking. One of the walls were completely missing, gaping the furniture like vital organs. Naruto couldn't tear his eyes away from the tombstone like construction.

Had anyone been hurt in the struggle? What a stupid question, there was no doubt that there were hundreds of people dead. Civilians would not be spared, it wasn't a mission... this was full out warfare. The Suna and Oto nins weren't taking prisoners; they wanted to obliterate Konoha entirely, until not a single child remained. Was Konoha really hated this much?

Raidou dropped into the next dingy, damp, disgusting alley, motioning for the blond haired ex-Anbu to do the same. Seconds later, just above their heads, a platoon of masked Suna ninja flew past. _Suna Anbu._ Only about 12 or so, a relatively small platoon for such outright combat, Naruto felt his palms itch as the need to take them down overpowered his senses, but Raidou was already moving. He waited a few seconds longer, icy blue eyes still staring in the direction of the enemy Anbu, before he followed. He jumped the puddle of suspicious, crimson sludge and narrowly avoided falling into the brown haired man's back when he suddenly stopped once more. Naruto sighed. The man was far too cautious and they were practically in friendly territory now.

The curdling smell of rotten flesh and stagnant blood reached his nostrils. There had obviously been a large skirmish nearby not too long ago… Who had won? _Finally_ the man darted forwards and Naruto dawdled after him, rather enjoying acting like such a petulant child. He decided it was time to make up for the occasions when he had been expected to be mature when all he'd really wanted to do was curse and pout. Raidou hadn't noticed that he was still making his way across the street, slowing in order to kick a kunai or stub out a smoldering exploding tag that had failed to ignite properly. Naruto continued to move forward at a pace that couldn't even be considered _civilian_.

When Raidou did eventually notice, he just sighed and continued onwards. If the boy wanted a combat situation, he was _not_ going to help him find one. The ex-Anbu got bored of his game and rapidly caught up to the scarred man, not bothering to apologise or explain his behaviour. Raidou hadn't been waiting for one.

"Your little friends just got back to base." He murmured softly, aware that too much noise would bring Suna-nin crashing down around his ears "They just got past the marker."

Naruto nodded with a grim expression and noticed that Raidou didn't bother to ask questions that he would have asked any other child his age. There were no 'Are you doing okay?' or 'Is anything wrong?' and it made Naruto feel a little _annoyed_. He knew it was wrong to want to commit a 'teensy, little bit of revenge' during a war time crisis, but it was only really harmless fun, and he needed to escape from the brown haired Chunin without crushing his confidence.

"We need to hurry up." Raidou murmured softly, the blond agreeing in quiet monotone. The Chunin turned his back for one second, when his eyes swiveled back to the blond prisoner, all he saw was a figure disappearing in a blur of pure speed. Raidou could only sigh in exasperation as he formed the seals for a shunshin, feeling the rapid rush of chakra and the sudden sense of vertigo.

That _idiot_.

By the time Raidou arrived in friendly territory, he was overpowered by the sense of complete and utter panic. Bodies were rushing left, right and centre. There were Genin, Chunin... the Anbu were everywhere, attempting to regain control on the hysterical mob of supposed ninja. The older Chunin and Jounin were attempting to help, but they understood the reason for the wide spread hysteria. This was their first true combat situation since the last Great War. Raidou spun quickly, his dark, chocolate eyes were searching for that familiar mop of sunny blond, but Naruto was nowhere to be seen.

The Chunin captain cursed.

Had it all been a ploy?

He quickly scanned the surrounding area. This had obviously been a meeting hall of some sort, but the entire roof had been blown away by a super powered jutsu or an amazingly large summons, the terracotta tiles and peach walls were scattered around the surrounding area, hindering the process of control. The acidic stench of burning flesh, congealing blood and bile made his nostrils sting and his eyes begin to water. The green roofed apartment buildings were looking slightly better, although only slightly. This side of the building had been completely demolished, making it appear as if the building had been sliced in half. Many of the Konoha-nin had stationed themselves by the windows, offering meager defense but Raidou knew it would lead to scrambled information reports.

He thought he could taste ash in his mouth as he swallowed. Could this be one of Konoha's last days? He could see a make shift first aid tent, stationed in the very middle of the secure territory. The white material, a hastily constructed first aid banner, flapped forlornly in the stormy breeze.

Perhaps Naruto had headed there to find the Uchiha and his friend? He threw himself forwards, slamming through the almost impenetrable throng of panicking bodies, no hesitating to smash shoulders or elbow someone in the soft, tender flesh of their stomachs. He _needed_ to get through to the first aid he finally burst through the bloodied and dirtied tent flaps, giving the medic-nin such a fright that she almost attacked him, he was surprised at the amount of groaning and moaning bodies. Once again the ashen feeling rose up his throat and he thought he would lose his breakfast. He could see the Uchiha and the blond haired boy being tended to by a sole, male medic-nin. Compared to many of the injured Konoha-nins, their injuries were not as life-threatening.

"C-can I help you Sir?"

He looked down sharply, finding himself staring into the terrified eyes of the medic-nin he had startled with his rapid entrance. When he looked a little closer, he was surprised to see how young she was. The Medic-nin Chunin badge wasn't present on the sash around her waist. It had originally been pure, snow white, now it was a mockery of that colour, splashed in red and brown. He glanced around quickly, searching for any sign of the elusive _idiot_ that he had lost just minutes earlier, but like before, he wasn't there. He gave the young Genin and soft smile in a hurried attempt to reassure the trembling girl.

"N-no, it's nothing."

He spun on his heel and found himself outside in the madness one more. Somebody needed to take control... quickly. Far above the floor, something caught his eye. The Anbu were clustered together on the third floor of the ruined apartment building, having turned their efforts away from herding the people like sheep and now appeared to be planning a different approach. Raidou just watched them in curiosity for a few minutes, simultaneously searching for the elusive blond. Had he left the area entirely? Perhaps he was in a different part of the destroyed meeting hall, hidden from view by the sea of convulsing bodies.

His breath caught in his throat when the familiar whisker marked face appeared from within the masked throng.

"Konoha." That one word, not a question nor a plea like those of the Anbu just ten minutes beforehand, but a statement. A statement that had the panicking people slowly quietening until the entire area was completely silent. The blond was surrounded by the imposing Anbu as if he belonged there as each and every one of the masked men and women stood at attention. Ever so slowly, whispers and rumours begun to fly around the crowd.

"_Definitely Kitsune..."_

"_Has to be..."_

"_...thought he died."_

The blond, Kitsune _or_ Naruto, Raidou wasn't sure, lifted a hand and the whispering ceased as quickly as it had started. The younger Genin and Chunin had stopped to stare at the small blond child, who stood out against the navy blues and pearly purples of the impassive Anbu. Once again, Naruto began to talk, his voice either carried by a jutsu or the charisma of a natural born leader.

"If we continue like this, Konoha _will_ fall." He told them, his young voice ever so serious as it carried through the air "If we continue to fight among ourselves for power, we will be _exterminated_." Not a person spoke as they stared upwards at the blond haired child; those old enough to remember the last Great Shinobi War were strongly reminded of the Yondaime in the moments before he had entered battle. Some of the more intelligent members of the shinobi did the math, small, triumphant smiles breaking across their weary faces as hope was rekindled by the not so anonymous blond. "If we work together, we can push the Suna invaders from our walls. Is Konoha not based on the value of teamwork? Is that not what we have fought for in the years gone by? Our friends? Our allies?"

There was a soft, breathy chuckle as Naruto seemed to remember a half forgotten memory. "The Sandaime is fighting for your freedom, for your families' freedom, for your children's' freedom... will you not do the same for him?"

It was softly spoken, yet every last person heard those words, they would be recorded in history books for many years to come. There was a moment, so very quiet and still that it felt almost like an eternity, before the entire throng of people erupted into peals of:

"For Konoha!"

It was amazing how quick the Anbu managed to control and manage the crowds, effectively setting up a harbour area with constant patrols and sending out the recon teams in order to spread the words that the orders were coming from the meeting hall.

Slowly. Ever so _painfully_ slowly, Konoha was beginning to find its feet and fight back against the intruders. More and more reports were flowing in about how the enemy lines were falling back to the outer areas of the village and each sector was being regained as friendly territory once more, one at a found himself at the heart of the discussions, being asked whether he approved of an idea or plan of action before it was put in place and for a second the young blond wondered if this was what it would be like to be Hokage. He already knew the answer of course, but there was no harm in asking himself again.

There were masks that he recognised, some of them he could even place names and faces to, mixed within a throng of much younger Anbu members who hung on the fringes of the battle preparations. There was one mask that really caught his eye though, the sweeping dark lines and oh so familiar eye decorations. He pondered for a moment, thinking about the pros and cons of the plan he was about to embark upon, then he stood to his feet.

"Yama."

The masked figure turned quickly, surprised that the ex-Anbu even knew his codename, before he stammered. "I-I think you've got me mixed up with someone else S-sir."

Naruto smiled gently, a tiny almost unnoticeable smile, but those who had known him in his childhood as Kitsune; bit back the whispers that they urged to share with each other. The blond rarely smiled... ever.

"I'm not mistaken Yama." The boy continued, ignoring the curious stares as many of the bustling Anbu slowed to a stop in order to watch the curious verbal exchange between the year old newbie and the ex-Captain. "You may not be the Yama I knew, but I'm going to trust you with a very important mission."

The restless Anbu had actually screeched to a halt and it was so quiet that Naruto could hear the breath rattling against the inside of Yama's mask. "W-what would that be Sir?"

Naruto spun on his heel, striding back towards the table as the shinobi and konoichi scattered in order to let him continue unhindered. Yama followed him with light footfalls, the way that he gripped the hilt of his barely scuffed ninjato a testament to his well hidden nerves. Naruto quickly spun back again with a dirtied wad of mismatched papers pinned between his thumb and index finger. The blond haired boy quickly proffered them to the silent, dark haired ninja.

"This is a list of people that I want you to retrieve for me, if they ask strange questions like 'What do you want me for?' or start to ramble on about how they're not shinobi'... I want you to ignore them and just come straight back here okay?"

Yama took a few seconds to skim down the list, a few names were familiar such as the Nara and the Ikimichi, but there were a few that he'd never heard of before. He wanted to desperately question the young boy who had quite literally taken them by storm and revolutionised their plans to regain Konoha, but by the way that his captain had squawked when the blond had first arrived, there was no way that this was a normal kid. A Henge maybe? The Sandaime in disguise? The Yondaime in disguise? Yet he restrained all the questions that he wanted to ask and snapped his heels smartly together as he raised a hand in salute.

"Yes sir!"

"Bushou, Tsubame?" His voice was brittle and cold, belying neither fear nor empathy nor compassion. His features were cold and unflinching, surveying the chaos with the air of a seasoned veteran, the people didn't seem to want to get too close to him, going so far as to leave meters in between themselves and the boy. Two of the oldest captains snapped to attention, raising a fist in a salute as they chorused in perfect synchronicity.

"Sir!"

Naruto lazily turned to the two men. Bushou was the eldest, reaching the age where most shinobi chose to retire to a far more simple life. The grizzly, grey haired man had no family to speak of and expressed his desire to serve Konoha until he was killed in action, he was usually charged with the care of Anbu recruits. Naruto respected the man almost as much as the Sandaime or Kakashi.

Tsubame was younger, his raven black hair flecked with silvery strands and his tanned hands were lined and hardened. Three symmetrical scars ran across the hollow of his throat, hidden by the soft navy fabric of his shirt, two of them were no more than silvery lines but the third was an ugly purple. It had been one of the Kumogakure claws, but the particular Kumo-nin had poisoned one of the three blades… it had almost been too late for medic-nins to save his life.

"The area… is it secure?"

The dark haired Tsubame was the one who answered, he had been appointed as the head of communications. "Impeccably Sir. We've managed to regain at least 18 of the enemy sectors, including this one… there are only five left."

Naruto nodded slowly, striding towards the edge of the ruined building in order to survey the devastated landscape, smoke and flame tainting the blood red sky, the dying sun illuminating the last of the storm clouds. "The stadium?" The words almost sounded like they had been dragged from the boy's throat, bitter resentment clear in his frosty tones.

"Still under enemy influence, although our reports tell us that Sharingan Kakashi has taken control of the situation. It's only a matter of hours until the stadium is ours once again Sir."

"Thank you Tsubame." Naruto continued to stare over the buildings as if he was staring over a never-ending sea, his cerulean eyes didn't even blink as the wind blew acrid smoke over the area. "Don't let me detain you any longer."

Taking that as his cue to leave, the Anbu saluted smartly before twisting on his heels and disappearing within the ranks of now-organised elites of Konoha's ninja forces. Naruto turned his attention to Bushou, who had yet to move from his position by the burnt and blackened desk.

"There has been no word on the Sandaime?" The arctic exterior almost cracked as the soft, lilting tones returned. The boy was clearly worried for his esteemed leader, a man that had treated him almost as a son, was battling a powerful enemy. They didn't know whether he'd live to see another day.

"There has been nothing Kitsune-sama."

The blond boy winced, his eyes a curious mixture between furious and self-loathing. He ran a tanned palm through his vibrant yellow hair, tinged by the crimson light of the setting sun, tugging a little more forcefully than was needed. A tiny moment of weakness, something that the young leader was more than happy to flaunt. "If you have to address me Bushou-taichou, please do not call me by that name. Kitsune is no longer an active identity, nor do I enjoy being reminded of the past."

"Then if you may speak out of turn, then so will I." Bushou murmured, his low, earthy voice clear in Naruto's ears, yet it wasn't strong enough to carry to the others "If it is not Kitsune, then I shall address you as the Godaime, Hokage-sama."

Naruto was silent for a second.

"That could be called treason."

Bushou nodded, his expression hidden by the porcelain mask that was decorated with an array of colors and shapes, the original design lost beneath the thousands of artistic swirls and scrapes.

"It could." The old shinobi agreed with a wistful whisper.

"You could lose your captaincy, be forced into an early retirement, never able protect Konoha from her enemies just because you had a _foolish_, drawn out hope in a reject like me." Naruto chuckled, but his eyes were glassy and his mouth was curled up into a brutal, unfeeling smile.

"Yet we still follow you... do we not?" The man swept an arm over the organised crowd a few stories below "An individual that has no more than a civilian status... Who has already abandoned his duty once before."

Naruto didn't wince. He wouldn't allow himself to show such weakness at the truth. He was done running from the past now.

"There was a reason that the council chose you." Bushou supplied, his rigid, trained posture not slipping once.

"The council are fools." Naruto spat back quickly, drawing more than one concerned glance from the other Konoha-nin who were becoming apprehensive of the short, icy tempered boy and what he might do to their adored captain.

"That they are." Bushou chuckled, his deep, satin-like voice belying his aged appearance. The sound was soothing on the ears and on the soul. "But are we not all fools?"

This time the ex-Anbu didn't reply, his posture had slipped from rigid indignance to one of weary acceptance. The grizzly, grey haired captain took this as his sign to step forward, no longer kept at bay by such aloof behavior. He stood shoulder to shoulder with his temporary commander, his sharp grey eyes taking in every single expression of pain, sadness and hope that was conveyed in the thousands of faces below him in the bare bones of the destroyed meeting hall. There had been a reason for the young commander to call him, but so far he hadn't explained why, Bushou just stood and watched the sinking sun fall behind another dark cloud and hummed softly to himself as the foreboding, thunderous cloud was haloed in glowing golden light.

It really was beautiful.

"There are four people in the world that the Hokage trusts with vital information." Naruto murmured quietly "Perhaps there's really only three now… I don't remember the last time he accepted my judgment on any _vital_ matters."

Bushou nodded. Listening.

"Hatake Kakashi is another." Naruto listed the man off on one finger, counting each name down as he spoke "As well as Uryu Yoimaru and then… well then there's _you_."

The old man tensed, his shoulders hunching together as if he expected a physical confrontation. The blond watched the subtle reaction to his statement and sighed wearily.

"Bushou…" This time there was no sign that the man had heard him speak but the blond didn't push his words any further allowing them to slip back into uncomfortable silence. An explosion in the far distance, probably just outside the imposing stone walls of Konoha, threw dust and dirt into the air. Was it an ally or an enemy? Was anyone injured? A platoon of Konoha-nin were silhouetted by the setting sun, their dark, long shadows streaking across the rooftops as they darted out of view, no doubt pursuing their unfortunate enemies. The lookouts that were stationed at the highest points in the area were relaying coordinates to their accomplices on the ground, that would then bring the information to the head of defense.

It was a beautiful sight to behold, like a perfect, lethal clockwork war machine.

"What can you tell me of Uchiha Itachi's reappearance?"

* * *

"But you've already tried to kill me once Itachi-kun." Orochimaru purred as he slithered forwards, his clammy cold hands reaching forwards as if he wanted to brush against the pale skin of the boy's cheek "You failed."

Kisame growled as he checked the Hokage's vital signs. Blood had drenched the front of his sleek black battle suit, the battered golden colored armor stained copper in places where the ruby red liquid had dripped.

"Be careful Itachi." The blue skinned Kiri-nin muttered, although the dark haired boy gave no sign that he had heard his friend at all, his attention was focused on the man stood barely five meters away.

"There was only one reason that you remained alive." Itachi felt like he was burning up on the inside, as if flames were curling and spreading and twisting behind his ribs, scorching his skin from the inside out. Anger?

"Oh yes?" The deathly pale man hissed, his pleasure of the bloodshed that surrounded him was more than obvious and it made the dark haired boy feel _sick_. This was the man that he had admired as a child? This was the man that had influenced him to fly through the shinobi ranks? It made him feel _more_ than just sick. Orochimaru watched the silent, motionless teen with beady yellow eyes, the scent of subdued anger tantalizing to his delicate senses. Iif only the boy would let him have a taste of that _power_.

"It was a promise." The murmur was so quiet, so subdued, that the Sannin could barely hear the words over the roar of the dying ninja in the stadium far below. Were they Oto-nin? Were they Suna-nin? How about Konoha-nin? Were there corpses down there that he could name? Others that he had fought with? A malevolent chuckle rattled at the back of his throat.

"A promise? You Konoha shinobi and you're stupid, pathetic, _worthless_ values!" It escalated from a breathy whisper to a crazed scream, but the boy stood in front of him had not flinched.

"It was a promise not to kill you."

"And who made you promise a thing like that hmm?" Orochimaru pretended to play the question as if he was merely humoring an inquisitive child but he really was curious. Who commanded enough power to prevent Itachi from exacting out his revenge?

"There were two people."

Red, Sharingan eyes blazed to life once more, seeming to draw in the crimson rays of the falling sun. Orochimaru quickly looked down, he had yet to fit the last piece of his plan into place and he couldn't risk it by making eye contact with the Uchiha. He'd let the boy think he had the upper hand.

"One was your mentor, a man who may have once called you son." The Hokage, an old, senile wretch of a shinobi that did not deserve a place amongst the most respected ninja of all time. Orochimaru knew that the old man wanted to forgive him and foolishly hoped that he might one day return to the village but he never expected the man to force that belief onto others. If the Hokage was one… who was the other?

"The second didn't ask in order to save your life, in fact the very opposite. He wanted to kill you himself, with his own hands and his own jutsus. He told me once or twice of his plans-" More than once or twice in reality, Itachi could reiterate the plans without a single fault "-and any pain that you receive today would have been doubled many times over had he been the one to catch you."

Who was it? There were many people that had wanted him dead over the years, even before he had split away from Konoha…

"Who?" Orochimaru rasped in fury, his amber eyes widening in anger as his nails dug into his palm "Who?"

Itachi smiled as his hands slotted together to make an unfamiliar jutsu seal.

"Namikaze Naruto."

Orochimaru couldn't even reply. The Yondaime's name… his son? The container of the Kyuubi no yoko? He could hardly believe it. Quickly jumping into action once again, Orochimaru retrieved the sword of Kusanagi once more, comforted by the familiar weight that rested in the palm of his hand as he grinned. No matter how skilled Itachi was, there was no way that he knew the full capability of the sword that he wielded. The Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi, the Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven.

"But there are times when one must break promises."

Orochimaru spun, suddenly aware that the Uchiha was no longer in sight. The boy must have slipped away when his attention had been elsewhere.

"Like now!"

The Snake Sannin barely dodged the descending blade and had he not deflected it with the Kusanagi, then it would have skewered him in half. There was no way that he could have evaded death had it not been for the mystical sword. The eerie glow of orange chakra, almost like heatless flames, caught his attention and his eyes snapped up. Itachi was surrounded by the wild, orange tendrils of chakra that snapped and spat with the fury of true flames and in his hand sat a flaming, golden sword with a gourd-like hilt. The Kusanagi sang to its brother and the Totsuka returned its sorrowful song.

'_How can that be?' _Orochimaru thought to himself as he felt his chest tighten in well concealed fear '_I've been searching for that sword for all my life and have never found a trace!'_

The fizzling orange chakra had begun to take shape behind the boy, bending and twisting until the stream of bright chakra had faded into delicate strands the color of red tainted orange, like the surly glow of a slowly dying fire. They looked like wings, extending from behind the boy's back towards the very edges of the purple barrier that his loyal Oto-nin had constructed around him, although they were by no means the soft, angelic wings that he had seen in picture books, instead each feather looked as sharp as glass and as strong as steel.

What…what was this?

Itachi leapt forwards, not bothering to distract the Snake Sannin's attention, it would all be over in minutes. Orochimaru may believe that he was undefeatable, with a sharp mind and quick reflexes and no morals to restrict his actions, but Itachi _knew_ that he was better than the pale skinned man. The Kusanagi and Totsuka met in a sorrowful shower of glowing sparks, they were blades that were supposed to be used side-by-side, not on opposite sides as enemies.

"If you just came with me-" Orochimaru grunted as the heavy blow momentarily robbed his breath "Your brother would be safe!"

The pause that followed was exploited by the silver Kusanagi and drew blood, but still Itachi didn't show any signs of a slipping composure, his face remained emotionless.

"If you were dead, we'd both be safe." Itachi growled and Orochimaru almost made the mistake of making eye contact with the dark haired boy in his surprise. When his eyes hit the floor, he noticed how much blood had been splattered across the light tan tiles and it made him smile. Itachi may have been better in hand-to-hand combat, he may be faster but he couldn't hold out as long as Orochimaru could. The years that he had spent, slowly increasing his strength and jutsu prowess, had given him the one thing that he could use in order to defeat Itachi. The boy could just activate his Mangekyou Sharingan, but for some reason he had yet to rely on his bloodline limit… why?

The Totsuka clashed once again, the sizzling heat of the gourd-hilted sword burning at his skin as it got a little too _close_. What kind of powers did this golden sword possess? What kind of god-like powers did it grant the lithe dark-haired boy? The coiling gossamer wings still hung in the air, fragile threads that appeared to be as delicate as crystal but no matter how hard the traitorous Snake Sannin tried, he couldn't dispel the smoldering orange phantom chakra.

"You're getting slower." Orochimaru chuckled dryly, pointing out Itachi's fatal flaw, he was built for rapid speed and ridiculous output of strength, not for long drawn out battles like this. "You're not going to win."

Itachi was still silent, appearing to let the comment wash over his head, but inside his stony composure was fissuring. It was a possibility that he may lose… his arms and legs were feeling heavier by the second and the wound on his side was searing in teeth-clenching pain. He had maybe a minute left to finish it. Less than 60 seconds. There was one last opportunity, one last chance before Kisame would have to step in and Itachi would never achieve his revenge, or the weight of Naruto's own murderous drive. They were at a standstill, which bought him a few more seconds to put the finishing touches to his plan. With a quick flick of his wrist, a mixture of senbon, shuriken and kunai closed the distance between him and his enemy.

Orochimaru was distracted by the glint of the steel projectiles so that when he looked back up, he was confronted with three carbon copies of the Uchiha male, each and every one of them carrying an almost visually perfect copy of the golden, flaming Totsuka. The only problem was, a sword like the Totsuka couldn't be copied. The cloned version appeared to be the same, felt the same as it sliced into warm flesh, but the same supernatural properties could not be captured in one simple jutsu. The three clones lunged forward and Orochimaru wondered at what angle the boy was attempting to take this attack at. It was easy enough to avoid the three Itachi's when they were diving forward so recklessly, leaving an easy escape route.

He pushed upwards, allowing the chakra to propel him towards the sky and he soared free for a brief moment, sneering at the cool, calm gaze of the Uchiha prodigy. His fingers flittered through a futon jutsu but he suddenly stopped as he body jerked into paralysis.

'_W-what?'_

Red, windmill eyes melted into existence just a few centimeters in front of his face.

"This is it." The deep, serious voice echoed in his ears as blinding cold pain shot through his chest "This is it."

He tried to say something, but all that passed his lips was blood tinged spittle and his chest ached. The flare of fiery pain shot through his entire body and he was hit with the sudden realization that the flames of the Totsuka were slowly consuming his soul…

'_I haven't learned all there is to learn!'_ He wailed, attempting to thrash his arms wildly as his vision slowly began to fade into darkness '_There are still so many things I need to know!'_

The screams of a tortured soul should have repulsed him, yet as Itachi continued to stare into the panic-ridden amber depths of the sick, twisted man who had once been his hero, the sound was a sweet as birdsong. Now he knew that Orochimaru would be eternally trapped inside the nightmarish genjutsu with no hope of escape… the snake could no longer slither out of his grip. The sword of Totsuka shuddered in revulsion as the last dregs of the filthy, contaminated soul disappeared into the gourd-like hilt. Itachi could feel the last of his chakra begin to run dry and the sword slipped through his fingers and splashed to the floor, no longer able to keep its form in the physical plane. It hissed and spat, the orange liquid appearing to seep into the very roof stones as the sun ran away and plunged the world into darkness. Itachi felt the world swing on its axis and the floor begun to hurtle towards his face. His arms wouldn't respond to his attempts to stop his descent, but all he could do was brace himself for the contact with the concrete. His body suddenly halted and he heard a soothing voice in his ear as his eyes rolled back into his head.

'_M-mother?'_

* * *

Thanks for all the lovely reviews *blush* I was so happy that you're all enjoying it so much!

And yup, my plans to 'become a cool old cranky person who can tell the weather by their bones' have been set into motion :D


	22. Struck by Destruction

AKA_ The long awaited chapter in which you pelt me with rocks_. Hi, you may not remember me but at one point I used to update stories... Who am I kidding? Who cares about excuses (despite the fact they are in fact all perfectly valid) you're here to read _fiction_, not my life story :P Right... brief summary of story and chapters leading up to this one:

_Naruto was once an prestigious ANBU member who abandoned the organisation for reasons unknown, promising to never again pick up a weapon or use a jutsu against another human being for as long as he lives... but Konoha is being hunted from the shadows..._

_Konoha has been attacked by Suna and Oto,  
Itachi has returned and begun to help Konoha in their battle against the forces of 'evil',  
finally having enough reason to get rid of Orochimaru the snake Sannin once and for all.._

_Naruto was imprisoned for killing a Suna shinobi but has since broken free,  
he's found a resistance group and begun to help them reorganise.  
He now finds himself in a position of power he never asked for... _

* * *

He was suddenly struck by how easily he could destroy Konoha. One word... one misdirection... and he could bring one of the strongest, most powerful ninja villages to its knees. He wouldn't have to lift a finger. Cerulean eyes shifted over to the rigid form of Bushou, who was conversing quietly with a wild-eyed, out of breath Medic-Chunin. Why did the old Anbu choose to follow him? Naruto had even tried to discourage the disgusting behaviour, yet the experienced veteran had battled back with his own infuriating belief. Hhe believed that he was doing the right thing.

The building was lit by the sooty, orange lamps that were usually issued for Genin level missions as it was the only thing that they could find on such short notice amongst the rubble. Naruto didn't care, he preferred the dark: everything was far simpler. Without a sound he spun, vaulting up the ruined wall until he reached the deserted rooftop. Some of the shinobi were glancing up in curiosity but were quickly driven away by the icy glare that the boy directed towards them. He had no time to play nice. The village was still glowing an ugly, crimson red as sparks flickered in the midnight sky, but the number of fires was beginning to dwindle as the Suiton users were deployed to take care of them. The cool, summer night breeze would have been refreshing were it not for the ash that tainted it.

He permitted himself a brief second to relax, allowing the air current to brush gently against his forehead and twitch his hair away from his ears. How had Konoha found herself in such a state?

"Kitsune-sama." The blond boy looked down in annoyance. It was Bushou. Suppressing a weary groan, he leaped from the upper rooftop, colliding with the tortured wooden floorboards with a heavy thud. Naruto couldn't see the elder mans' face, but he could tell that the grizzled veteran didn't appreciate his childish behaviour.

"My, my..." The man sighed in mock exasperation "It's obviously far past your bedtime."

Naruto narrowed his eyes, wondering how easy it would be to erase all traces of the man from the face of the earth, yet the longer he kept eye contact with the depthless black, the more he felt his resolve weaken. A thin, tight-lipped smile rapidly crossed his face and he begun to chuckle softly, raising a dirt encrusted hand to brush against his forehead. "Forgive me."

"This day has been hard on us all." The man said softly and Naruto suddenly came to the conclusion that the man should have had a family, he was caring, patient and protected that which needed protecting.

"How do you cope?"

"It takes more than this to break my spirit, Godaime-sama." The Captain replied quickly, the light hearted banter clearly brightening the heavy, lethargic mood of those around them.

"Need I remind you that you are committing _treason_?" The blond sighed wearily, although there was a hint of sparkling laughter in the aquamarine depths. "There's no treason here Godai-"

"Call me Naruto..."

"Yes Naruto-sama."

"You're impossible."

"I try."

Naruto watched a well-executed suiton jutsu throw a billow of thick, bitter steam into the air as they once again lapsed into silence. This was _victory_? Orochimaru had gone, there had been no trace of the Snake Sannin at the arena, although there hadn't been _much_ left of the Hokage's box. Naruto wasn't sure what attack had been used, but the scorch marks had supposedly destroyed everything in their path.

If _this_ was victory then it was certainly a hollow one.

The Sandaime was still alive, although for a few hours even the most skilled of Medic-nins believed that the old man would die of his wounds, yet he pulled through. Itachi had also been admitted into the intensive care ward of the villages' main hospital. It had taken some explaining, but eventually the Jounin had believed that the Uchiha was no threat. It wasn't due to the fact that they _agreed_ with the blond boy, but it was in fact because they were utterly terrified of him. So all Naruto could do now was wait... wait for it all to be over. He had no idea what would happen to him, but his inner cynic told him that it wouldn't end well. Everyone had their place, everyone had a duty, everyone knew what they were supposed to do.

He didn't.

By official rights he was a civilian, he should have been evacuated like the rest of Konoha's non-military civilisation, not lording over the previously disarrayed troops. He was also a convict, he should have been detained in a maximum security prison without the luxury of smelling the ash and blood on the breeze. He was also, rather comically, taking part in the mutiny of the Sandaime's Hokage title, Bushou's stubborn conviction that Naruto was to be called Godaime-sama had begun to spread to the lower ranks, and the blond boy had begun to realise that it was highly amusing and nothing more. He'd probably still apologise for the incident once the Sandaime was coherent enough.

"You wanted me?"

Bushou nodded once in affirmation. "Reports from the Ino-shika-chou tell us that three high-ranking Suna and Oto officials have been detained, although the fourth escaped." The man paused, watching the blond bite his lip in annoyance "And the communication line from the east is positive, they're weeding out the last few enemies as we speak... there's no-one left to command them so we needn't worry about them too much."

"I see." The piercing blue eyes closed slowly and the blond boy exhaled softly, tilting his head from one side to another as if to work out a crick from his neck. "How are the medical division holding up?" They may be winning, but if their medics fell... their losses would fall into the thousands.

"The Anbu recruits have set up their own runner system between the hospitals and a few dozen Jounin have fallen back from the frontline to protect them." Bushou replied, the faint thrum of his steady breath hitting the inside of his porcelain mask was oddly comforting. Naruto's eyes flickered open once more.

All he wanted to do was get inside, eat something warm and collapse into bed, but he had to keep awake just a little bit longer. If he had known what was soon to happen.

"What class are the recruits from?" He asked quietly, more to satiate his own curiosity than to fulfil any terribly important purpose.

"Ah, there it is you see..." the older man chuckled softly "They've developed their own hierarchy within their own ranks; the more experienced are leading and ordering those who were recruited at the beginning of the summer season."

"Promising." The blond ex-Anbu murmured appreciatively, to which the Anbu captain replied with a low hum and a slow nod. His eyes drifted shut once more, threatening to pull him further into the darkness. How much he would give to just fall sleep forever. They lapsed into comforting silence. The loud explosions and showers of rubble began to die down, replaced by the eerie tranquillity of a forgotten battlefield. The melting tension was easy to see on masked and unmasked faces alike as rigid shoulders and hard eyes softened, weapons were not held at the ready and the paranoia that had kept them alive began to ebb away. Bushou moved away, his soft voice conversing with another as important plans were quickly made in order to keep Konoha alive and safe.

It was the perfect time for an attack. A Genin had fallen asleep far below, his two team mates were yawning and their eyes were drooping shut. It had been a long day for them all. Their Sensei was nowhere to be seen, was he injured? Dead?

Perfect timing.

Movement crawled to a stop. He could hear every individual, each and every booted footstep. What had drawn his attention to them? His eyes flickered open once more, focusing towards the silent horizon, narrowing as he attempted to find the cause of his sudden anxiety. Bushou had stopped talking with the old Anbu at his side in order to observe the young man whose whole body had turned rigid, no signs of his previous exhaustion present as a blinding amount of chakra was quickly whirred through his pathways.

Perfect.

Naruto watched as an Anbu he couldn't name suddenly snapped his eyes towards the abandoned market square, his fingers clenching in subconscious panic before he managed to roar out a warning:

" DOWN!"

A huge wave of pure, boiling, malicious chakra rolled over the deserted market square; tearing down buildings and throwing dust, mortar and corpses into the air. It was so potent, almost cloying the pure air with its' tainted stench, that people believed that the Kyuubi had been released once more. Naruto threw his hands together, flickering in and out of seals that came to him as easily as breathing before throwing his hands to the sky, causing a shimmering veil of crystalline chakra to be thrown into the inky blackness. The dark purple wave clashed violently against the almost invisible barrier and the blond boy gritted his teeth as the shock waves travelled from his outstretched hands and down his spine, leaving him feeling shaky and out of breath.

Naruto _knew_ the owner of the bitter tasting chakra.

His fingers tightened into his palms, the dirt encrusted appendages gouging into the tender flesh of his hand before he released them rapidly, allowing his chakra to violently shoot back down his arms and into his fingertips. The purple wave of chakra slithered forward, twisting and twirling as it fought to break through the defences of Naruto and those that had also risen to help defend their location, but eventually dissipated into thin air. He was absolutely exhausted, every fibre of his being was screaming out in pain as he stood upright, sharp blue eyes surveying the lone figure that stood at ease in the market square below.

"What are your orders sir?"

The amount of self-control it took to turn and look at his self-appointed right-hand man without killing him, was far higher than was considered sane. His blood was boiling in his veins as his eyes flew back to the hooded figure who stood, unmoving and unflinching, amongst the still corpses below. His chakra was singing beneath his skin, thrumming and beating with a more vicious tenacity than his heart beneath his ribs.

"Maintain the perimeter... he wants to talk."

"A man that wishes to talk to you does not approach with weapons in hand." Bushou pointed out, yet fell silent and drew away from the young commander, motioning for the other alert shinobi to drop back as well. If Naruto had been expecting shifty, tense glances passed between the uncertain Konoha shinobi then he was proved wrong when the ninja snapped into line without hesitation.

"We await your orders sir." Bushou murmured, snapping a sharp salute at the young commander who also raised his hand in recognition, a faint smile adorning his muddy features.

"Thank you Bushuo-taichou. If I'm killed please allow him to escape." Then the commanders' form grey hazy and blurred away into the darkness.

"You managed to escape then little fox?" Naruto skidded to a halt, his eyes flashing dangerously in the darkness as he finally reached the cloaked man in the market square, his features hidden away from view by the shadows of the indigo hood. The boy didn't answer the question, instead his stood tense and ready, prepared for the eventuality that the hooded man might strike.

"Your manners haven't improved Uzumaki." He whispered smugly, glancing down and the blood encrusted fingernails of his hand with an air of arrogance. Naruto gave a coarse chuckle but still didn't speak, waiting to see where Kabuto would take the conversation. The silver haired double-crosser sighed.

"By now I'm sure you know that my old master is dead." Naruto carefully schooled his features, he knew that the snake bastard was nowhere to be found, but he had never guessed that the Sannin had been killed. "However we have come to a difficult... _situation._"

Naruto' s eyes narrowed at the sound of malicious delight in Kabuto's voice and his brain kicked into overdrive. Had the apprentice planted exploding tags? Poison gas? Kidnapped innocents?

"Uchiha Sasuke belongs to me."

That wasn't expected.

"Please _Yakushi_." Naruto all but spat, allowing the concealed kunai to slip into his grasp "Do explain _exactly_ how that makes sense."

"He has our seal, he is our property."

Naruto muttered a soft oath. The cursed seal... its' power had been locked away by the sealing squad and Kakashi, but the extents of its power were unknown. He had promised Kakashi that he would do an in-depth analysis of the seal at a later date in order to figure out what _exactly_ the seal had been constructed for, but he hadn't got round to it yet. "I don't think the Uchiha will want to leave with you_."_

"Maybe... Maybe not." The bespectacled man chuckled, the dull, dying flames catching the glass frames as he shifted "I was just coming to prepare you for the eventual outcome."

"Is this-" Naruto gestured with his free hand to the destruction around him; the ruined buildings and walkways, the smashed window panes and clusters of rubble. "-Not the outcome you were aiming for?"

"This... was never my intention, this was all a product of my late master's desire to obliterate his birthplace from history."

Naruto ground his teeth at the off-hand manner in which Kabuto spoke about the destruction and devastation that had befallen Konoha... a place that had taken the man in and raised him since infancy. "Then why are you here Yakushi?"

"I just wanted to see how Orochimaru would handle it all. It seems like I've finally surpassed him." The man spun, as if to signal the end of the conversation, yet he spoke once more "It's just a shame that I wasn't the one to watch you break."

"Watch me break?" Naruto quizzed, puzzled by the choice of words as a cold, icy feeling of dread crept up his insides... there was no way that this man could ever have known of that incident. Kabuto looked back over his shoulder at the young, blond haired boy whose guard had been slightly lowered due to his confusion.

"It would have been a mistake to put a person like you in charge of an entire shinobi army." Kabuto mocked, scorning the younger boy "How many people would have died due to your selfish whims?"

'_Too many...'_

"The Shodaime, Nidaime, Sandaime... even your _father,_ were-" The sound of malicious, twisted glee wormed its way into the silken tones, "decent leaders... compared to you- a snotty nosed, self-absorbed _brat_." Naruto froze, his eyes widening as the silver-haired ninja continued, his voice rising with delight as each word cut straight to the younger boys' soul. "What would the poor old Yondaime feel if he saw you now? Certainly not pride."

"I'm not their leader. The Sandaime is." The boy retorted stubbornly, the grip on his kunai turning white knuckled as he kept his anger under check. He knew he was doing a poor job of hiding his emotions, but the past few days had been absolute hell for him... his patience and control were both wearing dangerously thin. Thankfully the Konoha shinobi had listened to him and had kept their distance... at least he knew he had room to move about if he needed to.

"You may not be... however how do you feel standing behind friendly lines as the _pawns_ do as they're told? Living, breathing and then _dying_ just because you ordered it so? That's no redeeming quality of a great leader."

"They didn't have to follow me." Naruto murmured, suddenly feeling the chill of the night air against his skin as he shivered. "They didn't."

"They were looking for _someone_ to follow, you just manipulated them into following _you_." Kabuto chuckled, his back still turned to the young ex-Anbu in a blatant show of disregard for his power. "That's all we're good at... _manipulation_."

"You and I are not the same." Naruto growled.

"Oh really? I suppose you weren't thinking of how easy Konoha could be toppled at this particular moment? How easily a proud race of shinobi couldn't be brought down to their knees by just a word from your mouth? They're just _selfish, whimsical thought_s... where's the harm in them Naruto-kun?"

The icy dread was inside his head now, forcing its' way into his brain and into the space behind his eyeballs, constantly expanding until he had to ram his eyes shut in order to dispel the pain of it all. "It's not true." He lied softly between his teeth "I never thought such things..."

"Perhaps we're not so similar after all." Kabuto chuckled "I may not be a '_hero'_ but I don't lie to myself about such things."

"Take it back." Naruto spat coldly, eyes flaring into milky white as the moonlight reflect off his irises "Take all of it back."

Kabuto spun, his hood slipping away from his face and revealing eerie pale features, his skin almost translucently pale as jutting cheek bones were barely covered beneath the diamond skin. Naruto's senses were beginning to override as his chakra swirled lethargically around his still, tense-shouldered form, whipping back and forth like an angered cats tail. He could smell the sweat, blood and smoke on the air, although the cloaked form that was closing in on him left little scent behind. It smelt like old paper.

"Oh?" Kabuto brushed the hood away from his head, the corners of his tight, thin lips curling upwards in the corners whilst his dead, dark eyes remained icy cold. "And what will you do to me if I don't?" He was barely a metre away and Naruto could _feel_ the ocean of chakra encased in the human-like form, calm on the surface but full of violent eddies and currents in the darkened depths. He wondered if he could match up to raw power that was sure to be focussed in his direction at any given moment. "Will you kill me?"

With a deep calming breath, Naruto cast his memory back to his old lessons, painstakingly drilled into his head by his cherished senseis... The languid feel of chakra as it moulded itself within his pathways, slowing to a stop and holding the foreign yet oh-so-familiar shapes.

"Strip away my blood and flesh until nothing remains but bleached bones?"

It was just wordplay now, the petty, meaningless sounds that entered the mind and blinded it with darkened feelings of hatred and the fiery drive for revenge. It was merely the time for bluffing, creating a mask and hiding behind it. Words... so simple yet so deadly.

"Would you... enjoy my death?" Kabuto asked, the words spoken so innocently and so softly that Naruto could have mistaken them as being truly curious and heartfelt, yet something in his head snapped and the blond ex-Anbu lunged forwards. A sick, _rotten_ feeling curled upwards in his stomach as he came to the conclusion that he would _revel_ in watching Kabuto die. He dived forwards to the floor, narrowly missing a sizzling blue palm to his neck. Resisting the urge to glance back, he slapped his hand to the floor spun upwards, a booted foot barely catching the pale haired man on the chin yet the blow was enough to topple the man off balance for a second, giving the blond enough time to perform a jutsu. Naruto slammed his other hand to the floor.

"Kuchiyose no jutsu."

The particular movement of chakra was odd, an almost nostalgic feel to the way it rushed between seals before finally leaving his fingertips and splaying out onto the broken pavement. The blond vaulted to his feet as a familiar shape materialised at his side.

"Naruto-kun." The grey haired monkey summons acknowledged softly, to which the blue eyed boy nodded respectfully in return. "We will catch up later boy."

"I never knew that you had signed a summoning contract." The silver haired ninja sounded amused by the new turn of event, the smug tone of his voice was enough to set Naruto's nerves on edge but the young boys' face remained impassive. "And with the Hokages' personal summons as well, don't you feel special?"

Enma's form began to glow, each edge glinting gold in the moonlight as his form warped shape into a slender black staff, tipped with precious metals. It had been several years since he had wielded Enmas' adamantine staff, but now was not the time to be hesitant about his skills. If Yakushi won, there was no telling how Itachi would react to his younger brothers' disappearance.

"Who is this man?" Enma questioned softly, his form shuddering as he transferred a stream of tranquil chakra to his summoner. Naruto opened his mouth to answer, but before he could reply to the summons' question he was forced once again to go on the defensive as he narrowly missed the crackling blue chakra laden hand that was flying towards his face.

"It's rude to interrupt Yakushi." Naruto growled darkly, his blue eyes reflecting unnatural light in the shadows as a series of aquamarine seals burst into existence on his bare forearm "Did your _mother_ not teach you any manners?"

Naruto smiled, although it was far more like a wild animal bearing its' teeth. Kabuto appeared to be unaffected by the comment, although his eyebrows furrowed together momentarily before the silver haired traitor schooled his features into a neutral expression. The summoned staff rested comfortably in his right palm, golden tip hovering a few inches above the ground as the both searched for an opening. Dark eyes darted back and forth as Naruto's fingers twitched around the midnight staff in his grip. A deep breath in. Naruto lunged, sliding the staff towards Kabuto's legs yet quickly twisting his clasp into reverse and flung the opposite end towards the man's' shoulders in an effort to knock him off balance. Kabuto had been taken off guard for a mere fraction of a second before slithering inside Naruto's defence and causing the boy to skid back a few feet, assessing the damage to his ribs with a spare hand once he came to a stop.

He had been careless.

The blond boy quickly dodged a spike of condensed earth as it wailed past his cheek, and used the others as stepping stones before using the staff to conserve momentum as his feet attempted to strike at the silver haired man's torso, yet the attack was blocked by Kabuto's arm. They both knew that a seconds' delay could result in a loss. The seals on Naruto's forearm had slithered upwards, encasing his elbow and shoulder, the mass of carefully crafted lines dancing over his skin in a frenzy, flashing with the unnatural light that only a jutsu could posses. The skin beneath looked sore as the silvery ink burnt a pattern into the exposed flesh, ruby red mixing the with ethereal glow. It was a jutsu the medic-nin had never seen before. Kabuto pushed the boy away sharply, chakra lashing furiously at the air as the overwhelming energy was dissipated into their surroundings.

"What's so remarkable about the Uchiha?" Naruto hissed, his eyes catching the light of his mysterious jutsu "Why do _you_ need him so badly?"

The silver haired nin dropped back with a grimace, rubbing a bruise on his forearm with the inside of his hand. He never once looked away from the form of the young blond, he wasn't as predictable as Kabuto had expected him to be and he wasn't prepared for such a weak retaliation. The boy was planning something, yes, but his attacks were nowhere near the strength that his info had suggested.

"Why should you have to know?"

Irritation swelled in Naruto's chest but he quelled it quickly, such an emotion would get him nowhere with the sly-tongued traitor, there was doubt in his mind that it would cause the young man to become even more frustrating. "You're not even fighting me properly." Kabuto spat, his eyes shining in fury as he withdrew something within the confined of the purple cloak. Instead of the weapon Naruto had been expecting, adamantine staff raised in defence, he withdrew a card about the height and width of his palm, throwing towards the Konoha ninja with the accuracy of a shuriken. "This is hardly you at your strongest."

Naruto could barely make out his name at the top of the card, an old Anbu photo underneath, complete with all his past missions and signature jutsu. He raised a blond eyebrow.

"And where did you procure this from Yakushi?"

"Years of research."

"That's depressing." Naruto flicked it into the air, allowing it to burn away into ash with a theatrical flourish. Kabuto didn't even flinch; the blond was under no illusions that Kabuto had a replacement for the card he had destroyed. "Why bother?"

The bespectacled ninja ignored his question, his eyes examining the rows of able bodied ninja that had flocked to the square, lining almost every available surface with weapons readied and jutsus prepared. On the tip of a communications flag pole, stood the elderly Anbu commander, his hand held ready to instruct the wave of shinobi to crash down upon the traitor.

"I have no doubt that you could survive this possible onslaught Yakushi." Naruto grinned, combing errant blond locks away from his face with a spare hand, trails of silvery blue laced across tanned flesh "However there's little chance that you will escape without a scratch, and your intentions tonight were not to fight me until death."

Kabutos' porcelain face cracked as a flicker of fear was shown in his eyes. "You're right, I'm not at full fighting force... due to... _complications_." The blonds' grin grew a little more. His silver lined eyes closing in a sinister smile "However you were here to declare your rights on the Uchiha. I'm telling you now that it wouldn't be _wise_ to continue down this path." The midnight black staff whirred back into an offensive stance, poised to attack if Kabuto made a move to continue the battle.

"You are the one making the mistake Uzumaki-kun." Kabuto whispered venomously, the whites of his eyes flaring as he did so. "Don't think I'll be so soft on you when we next meet!" His sentence was punctuated by stream of medical chakra, fizzing wildly as it arced towards the blond boy, whose eyes widened in something akin to surprise as he was forced to abandon his jutsu and dodge out of the way.

"A next time?" Naruto panted, raising an eyebrow "Feeling lucky Kabuto?"

In a flash the traitor sped through a flurry of seals and Naruto felt his breath stop. Why did they never leave without a flashy exit? All he could expect was a destructive doton jutsu, but there was no doubt that Kabuto would have something else hidden away for an occasion such as this.

The blond ex-Anbu quickly motioned towards Bushuo. -_Get back, prepare barrier, dangerous_- With a roar the old commander ordered the troops into position, and the still night erupted once more into chaos as the ground begin to open into a supposedly endless cavern, the earth seemingly appearing to peel up at the edges and fold inwards upon itself. Flickers of magma and flames erupted from the cavernous depths, hissing and spitting as debris fell into its' open maw. It was if a slumbering dragon had suddenly awoken beneath the bricks of Konoha. Naruto quickly latched onto the floor with chakra, watching as ash, rubble and corpses begin to slip away into the darkness. He could hear screams of panic and desperation as the Konoha-nin were taken by surprise, the hoarse hollers of the commanders as they attempted to organise those under their control and the throaty chuckle of the man stood in front of him.

"Perhaps you can have your ticket to hell early, Uzumaki?"

Naruto snarled, the heat of fires below scorching his cheeks and burning his eyes. In the background he could sense the waves of Suiton jutsu that the captured Anbu were casting, effectively tiring them out as panic set into their systems. He crouched to the flaw, attempting to keep his centre of balance close to the floor as more loose rubble was sent tumbling into the abyss. Quickly dispersing Enma, he took in his surroundings. Some of those more prepared for the Jutsu had retaliated with Suiton, but it seemed to add to the flames as they flickered in and out of existence with infuriating inconsistency. A genjutsu? It couldn't be... It had to be a transdimensional summoning technique... it couldn't be...

A bubble of magma popped splattering some shinobi with its' liquid fire and their pained screams pierced his ears drums. Could this really be just a genjutsu? He was starting to believe that his first assumption, that this was all really a chakra enhanced mind game, was entirely wrong and the people that fell into the lava lake really did... It was a clever jutsu, and Naruto wondered why he had never encountered it before. He threw a kunai at Kabuto's form and was almost reassured when the traitor was forced to dodge it. That meant that as far as he was aware the man in front of him was the real thing and not a product of a genjutsu. This meant that the jutsu wasn't as dangerous as it seemed since Kabuto was also present within it.

Sudden realisation hit him and he could hardly believe it, this was all the product of a combination jutsu? A blend of illusion and reality? Kabuto's control had to be extraordinary to keep the balance between the two jutsus as usually opponents would snap back to reality as soon as they experienced physical pain and a lesser shinobi would struggle to keep their minds subdued. The silver haired medic seemed to be having no trouble with his task. Kabuto smirked, but made no move to attack the blond boy, instead he seemed completely intent on watching Naruto assess the hellish situation on his own, as Konoha fell apart around him.

"Godaime-sama!"

Naruto turned quickly, kunai raised as if the owner of the voice was an enemy, before realising his mistake and allowing the heat singed Anbu to come closer. The edges of Bushuo's mask tinged black by the lick of flames but the man himself seemed relatively untouched.

"How sweet." Kabuto crooned, his eyes locking with Naruto's "_Godaime-sama_."

"Is this it...?" Naruto asked quietly, his eyes dropping to the floor in defeat, fingers now only clinging loosely to the adamantine staff in his hand.

"Oh...?" Kabuto shifted his weight forward slightly and the flames grew higher, the heat became scorchingly unbearable and the harmony of discordant shrieking rose to an excruciating volume. Bushuo glanced from the screaming shinobi, stumbling about with their hands pressed against burning, melting flesh, and the two composed figures just meters in front of him. Why was Naruto not moving to stop the silver haired enemy? He almost moved to ask the boy, but Kabuto began to speak and the older man froze.

"I see..." He murmured, a hint of glee almost hidden behind those words "Have you finally realised Naruto?"

The blond boy had allowed his gaze to drop to the floor and Bushuo could feel no signs of aggression emanating from his body language or his chakra pathways, instead all the fight seemed to have just vanished. This wasn't a good sign if the smirk that now adorned Kabuto's face was any indication.

"They'll _never_ want you back here... you're a _reject_, a _broken_ toy." Each word caused the blond commander to visibly flinch as if he'd been struck "Why _bother_ to stay in a place that keeps a senile old man as its figurehead, a man that turned his back on you? Why seek their forgiveness when you could just burn it all to the ground?"

Naruto murmured something, however the roar of the towering inferno below and the cacophony of voices drowned it in a sea of noise. Kabuto raised a fine silver eyebrow, confident that the boy had finally broken. Bushou felt his chest tighten as he leapt forwards, only to be trapped beneath a colossal earthen hand that erupted from the broken concrete. He felt those amber eyes narrow in disgust at his presence, but he couldn't find the energy to escape, was it sapping his chakra too?

"I'm sorry Naruto-kun... what did you say?

The blond hadn't even looked round to check if the Anbu captain was still alive... that wasn't a good sign... was he seriously thinking of abandoning them?

"'m...f.."

Kabuto clearly looked like his patience was wearing dangerously thin, however it was clear that the man was trying his best not to lose his temper with the young man, there was something he wanted to hear from him first.

"I didn't quite hear you there Naruto-kun..."

The blond slowly raised his head and Bushuo couldn't see his face. What was he thinking?

"I said..." Both the Anbu Captain and the Traitor craned closer to the boy, his next words no doubt affecting the entire future of Konohagakure and all her inhabitants... "I said go to _hell_ Kabuto!"

Naruto darted forwards, his image shimmering violently as the effects of the fuinjutsu broke free from his skin in a violent torrent of wind and water, spraying the two opponents in a dense layer of watery mist, the silvery inked lines snaking like silken ribbons to pool around his feet, their clean, fresh light dispelling the sullied red of the fire that surrounded them. Kabuto drew back quickly, unprepared for the sudden assault as the whole nature of the boys' chakra pathways shifted in one fluid motion, changing the very composition of his chakra.

How was it even possible?

Naruto was suddenly upon him, skin sizzling with searing heat as a fist squarely connected with Kabutos' cheekbone and rendered a sickeningly satisfying crunch. The silver haired man flew backwards; arms reaching out in a vain attempt to regain his balance. The blond haired boy smiled and rolled his shoulders in anticipation as he flickered through the seals with well rehearsed precision. Kabuto regained his footing in time to see Naruto on the move once more, his half-open palm beginning to fill with bright, shrill chakra... the polar opposite to the chakra he had detected the boy to use in their previous fight...! What was the purpose of that seals? Bushou watched as the young commander faltered, each of his footfalls laced with pain as the light of the Fuinjutsu spluttered. Whatever technique he had contrived, it was far from simple. In once stunted, graceless moment Naruto dived for the traitor, the ball of sparks within his fingers suddenly throw from his grasp and arcing their way towards Kabuto's chest.

Time slowed.

There was a brief moment, where weary, terrified blue eyes met disgusted, endless black and then Kabuto was rapidly replaced by an old wooden crate, which was promptly torn apart by a high powered raiton jutsu that seared away the old scarlet paint, leaving the blond haired ex-ninja to watch the paint curl away with a bemused smile. The jutsu shattered like glass and the medic ninja that were waiting on standby flurried in like a wave of snowflakes, their white uniform a great contrast to the soot and debris. Bushuo shrugged free of the jutsu in time to watch the blond haired boy fall to his knees, his palms spread across the floor in an attempt to hold himself upright. The grizzled captain approached him with care, a gentle hand upon an unscorched shoulder. Naruto shuddered, not speaking for a moment before he muttered softly.

"Fuck that hurt..."

Bushuo had opened his mouth but words had fled him as he spied the bloody red spirals that had gouged themselves into his skin, linking and splitting apart in an almost familiar fashion, where had he seen such patterns before...? He didn't know if he dared ask the commander, so he remained silent, but Naruto had already guessed at the reason behind the man's extended silence.

"Perhaps if you could-" Naruto winced as his thin shirt snagged against an open wound "wait 'til I get something to kill the pain..." another breath, although slightly less ragged than the one before it "and then I can explain."

The Anbu captain nodded silently, before realising his mistake and verbalising his response. "Yes sir... we're going to send word of this man's appearance and make sure he doesn't apprehend the Uchiha, we'll set out on it now."

Naruto sighed and nodded his head slowly, shifting his weight back onto his knees and looking up at the boy's face, also tainted by the delicate loops and swirls. Bushou had to restrain a gasp. Was that what the jutsu did...? Within a few minutes, Naruto was once again on his feet and limbering up stiff joints. The raw, red grooves had died to pale pink ridges and the look of intense weariness was gone.

"Chakra pathways?" Bushuo questioned, eyeing the boy intensely for any sign that he maybe the possibility of mistruths. Naruto grinned a little, stretching a limb a little too far and receiving a sharp twinge of pain that caused him to smother it with a hand. He hissed between his teeth before replying.

"Yup."

"That's not physically possible." Bushuo stated bluntly.

"Gah!" Naruto yelped as the medics' healing jutsu knotted up his torn pathways, causing him to involuntarily grab his side "Sometimes I don't think it is either." He chuckled from between clenched teeth.

"It doesn't look like something I'd ever try..." murmured Bushuo as he watched almost an entire chakra pathway system reasserting its' natural shape, with painfully amusing spasms on Naruto's part. His muffled sounds of amusement simply brought a plethora of un-amused glares.

"There's no sign of Kabuto in the village?" It was still dark, barely an hour after the medical teams had moved in on the injured shinobi with a terrifying single-mindedness to cure.

"A team returning from a mission outside the village reported seeing him fleeing towards Kumo. We might assume they are also behind this attack."

"Two heads are better than one then huh?" Naruto sighed with a soft smile.

"It appears so, sir."

"And that would mean that this war has, for all intents are purposes, finished?"

"Yes, sir."

Naruto threaded dirt encrusted fingers through blood encrusted hair. He planned to sleep for the next twenty years and nobody or nothing was going to stop him.

"So how do we go on from here Bushuo-taichou? I'm a wanted criminal convicted by the Hokage himself. Do I spend the next _so_ many years in jail or do I run? Run and _never_ come back?"

"I pray that's a joke born from weariness and not a plan of action." The man sounded amused however there was a hint of wariness in his voice causing Naruto to sigh once more.

"If I had wanted to run… I wouldn't have been sat here speaking to you." The blond had his turn to sound amused, tipping his head back and allowing his eyes to slide shut, a soft breath expelling from his lips as he muttered "You can relax Captain."

The sun had yet to rise, although the moment certainly felt like the dawn should have broken, it was almost upsetting that the night wasn't suddenly replaced by sunshine and singing birds. Naruto wondered what was going to happen _now_ and felt a slight twinge of fear at the prospect of the unknown. Bushuo watched as the previously relaxed face twisted into a closed eyed grimace and wondered was going on in that mind.

"We need to arrange a proper meeting with central command, recon and whatever remains of the council." Naruto began, his eyes screwed together in pained concentration as his fingertips dug into crumbling concrete. "Could you do that for me?"

The grizzled captain quickly glanced at the skyline, noting the shadowy figures that were almost in sight, counting at least 4 that were making their presence know to him. Bushuo falling into step behind the short blond commander as he began to walk purposefully from what remained of the familiar cobblestone square and north up the main street. "Figures need to be calculated, we need to know how to continue."

"Ah you're mistaken." The older man murmured, chuckling softly "I'm a military man not a politician."

Naruto stopped so quickly that the Anbu would have crashed into him but decades of training had ingrained the required reflexes, and instead he narrowly missed the boy by pivoting to the left. The ex-Anbu never particularly spent time wondering about the schemes of the Hokage, what plans the old man had in store for him, but he supposed that he'd been fast-tracked into the job without his noticing. Naruto had been forced, usually by threats of withheld ramen, to present post-op debriefings to several high-ranked shinobi and council members, had to arrange training sessions and examinations, and navigate his way through the dangerous, thinly-veiled threats delivered in the form of tame propositions. It was almost second-nature to report straight to the source. Naruto began to walk again, breezing onwards as if the momentary pause had never happened and Bushuo also followed in his usual stoic manner, although the face beneath the porcelain mask was screwed up in confusion and curiosity, itching to know what the young man was planning as his next move. What would he say?

"What we need _is_ a military mind captain, I've no desire for fancy footwork." There was a hint of a smile in the otherwise serious words, an action that also caused the weathered captain to grin a little in return. "You'll be coming with me. No objections."

They skirted a pile of rubble, the tips of dirtied human digits just visible through the ruby tainted dust, but neither of the shinobi stopped to check whose side the hand belonged to. They were both far past caring as there was more important attention that needed to be provided to the living. Hopefully by midday the streets would be clean enough to function, a show of weakness was hardly desired with Iwa still breathing down their necks, old wounds still aching despite many years of strained peace. The Hokage… Naruto felt his heart clench and breathing felt almost impossible for a brief moment, the last he had heard the Hokage was still alive, albeit in a serious state. He could hardly imagine the world without the kind-eyed, kind-hearted man who would sacrifice his life in order to protect all that he held dear.

"Signal a Runner." Naruto yawned, stretching high above his head and wriggling his fingers "We'll need to assemble the _masses_."

This time Bushuo didn't muffle the chuckle and proceeded to flick his hand in a subtle signal that very few people knew. In less than six seconds there were three Anbu Runners knelt on the broken cobbles by Bushou's feet, the green triangles beneath the hollow eye sockets marking them as the elite communication lines of the Anbu.

"Komadori, Suzume, Hagetaka." Bushuo greeted, the surprise in his voice clearly evident as he addressed the silent trio "Please retrieve the surviving council members and take them to the council chambers as soon as possible."

"Yes sir."

Then in a sudden blur of volatile movement the three Anbu Runners had dissipated into thin air, hellbent on completing their respective missions. Naruto had no doubt that by the time they made their way to the meeting place, many of the council members would already be milling about, wondering why they had been called there on Anbu orders. Another person they needed to contact was Kakashi, and Naruto had felt the elder mans' presence flare to attention a few hours prior, so he was only a little worried that his old captain had yet to seek him out. Now he couldn't even sense an inkling of the familiar chakra, but he had no doubt that Kakashi would also be conserving his energy.

The landscape had changed and landmarks that he subconsciously looked out for were no more than a pile of ugly rubble. The two dragon-headed carp, their golden scales no longer present to reflect the morning sunrays as they'd both been destroyed. One of the elaborate roof tiles was no longer recognizable, the tarnished, twisted metal no longer resembling the fierce faced monsters that he run a trembling finger over as a child, that he'd perched atop during a team meeting and that he'd stood aside as the Suna-nin had lunged forwards to kill Hayate.

The other was nowhere to be seen and Naruto didn't want to think about it.

"We'll have the Anbu Commander present, yes? And… Ibiki no doubt, there'll be the Barrier Forces and Civillian Reps…" Naruto made a sound of disgust, covering his eyes with the palms of his hands "I'm not sure that I want to deal with this."

The old Anbu gave the young blond a good-natured shove to his shoulder, for which in return he received a playful glare. Naruto knew that really he had no right to be there, that he had relinquished any ties he had made to the village and its infrastructure, and all he was now was an unwanted intervention in Konoha's cogs, but all he was driven by was the need to set this _right_.

Once and for all.

"And pray tell, Uzumaki, what exactly are you wanting to represent here at the council meeting today?" The voice was old and raspy, and even if Naruto had not known who had just uttered those bitter words, he would have guessed that such a voice could only belong to Koharu Utatane. The last time that they had seen each other face to face had not been a good day for Naruto, and presumably not for the Hokages' advisors either. Homura was quiet, his grey eyes neither stony nor particularly kind, which made Naruto unsure of how to approach the still, refined man. In comparison to Koharu, whose entire body was shaking in suppressed anger, the man was a still a statue.

"What am I representing?" Naruto mused, half to himself and half to the audience "I don't know."

The previously noiseless council chamber stirred into life with bubbles of muttering, undertones of hushed whispers and frightened glances. "So why, after _all this time-_" The crescendo of noise was brought to a sudden silence when slate-faced Homura disrupted Koharu from her ranting with a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"You were the one who called this meeting?"

And the temperature dropped a few degrees. Naruto nodded, much to the astonishment of many of the council members before speaking softly. "I did."

Homura's expression flickered so quickly Naruto could believe that it had all been a trick of the light. He could feel Bushuo tense behind him as the attention of the council had been turned towards him. The blond boy wondered if Bushuo and the advisors knew each other at all. "And somehow, in the midst of it all, you managed to organize a key part of our resistance, going as far as to contact a team of select ninjas, both in service and retired, to target important persons within enemy ranks?"

Had information really got back to them that quickly? Naruto hadn't prepared for this.

"I suppose." He shrugged in nonchalance, feeling a little annoyed that they preferred to interrogate him over organising aide for the injured. "Despite the fact I'm no longer a registered shinobi doesn't mean that I can watch Konoha fall and _enjoy_ it." Naruto's tone took a dark turn. Grey eyes met vibrant blue.

"Konoha needs help, and if we're to spend our time at one another's throat she's not going to get it." A voice of reason called out, out of character for the leader of the Nara clan, part of the 'team of select ninja' that Naruto had sent out for. "We're not here to divulge our time with petty arguments."

There was an undercurrent of agreement. Koharu looked unsettled, her beady eyes making a desperate glance at the assembled faces, some bordering on agreement, others steely face apathy, and it brought a simple question to her mind. Why? It was the very same question that was plaguing Naruto at that exact same moment. Why did people feel comfortable with his leadership? It might be an odd question, but it was one that Naruto could not find an answer for. So he did his best to apply it to someone else, namely the Sandaime. Hiruzen was wise, gentle and kind, with infinite patience and limitless knowledge, but he was prone to ignoring the things that would disturb this image of perfection that he held of Konoha. It was common knowledge, that the Sandaime was no longer as prone to great displays of power and dominance, yet Konoha still felt comfortable following his leadership. Why?

Bushuo had given him a cryptic answer, but it had been of little use in his confusion.

"If we've decided that the Uzumaki boy is to stay-" Homura trailed off into silence, his eyes obscured by the sheen of light on his glasses.

"I vote in his favour." Shikaku.

"I too." Ibiki.

There were a few other neutral mutterings before Koharu was forced to motion for Naruto to sit down at an empty seat, which he did with a grateful bow of his head before slipping into a seat towards the back of the dark chamber.

"You questioning shall take part at the end Uzumaki."

He nodded in affirmation, his mask of apathetic indifference not once shifting as the eye contact between the old advisor and ex-Anbu was broken.

"The Sandaime is currently in a serious condition, however the medics have reported his condition has improved in the last few hours." Koharu began, her beady eyes staring down any comment that the council members intended to interrupt her with. "But as he's indisposed, Homura and I will be conducting this meeting."

There was a general tone of misbelief in the restrained mutters and Naruto could barely believe that there were people among the high council members that still had not heard about the Sandaime's injuries. However he noticed that no-one challenged the advisors' decision to commandeer the meeting, a clever ploy on the elderly shinobi's part.

"We first need to know how the Medical Division is holding up." Attention was quickly drawn away from the advisors and towards the Temporary Chief Medical Officer, a slim brunette woman who looked flustered by the all the eyes that suddenly turned towards her "Hamano Michiya?"

The woman, Michiya, bobbed her head in response to the calling of her name, riffled through some hastily compiled paperwork that Naruto had to praise her for managing to compile on such short notice. She could have only been working as Chief Medical Officer for a few months, since the previous Officer had passed away. Michiya found what she was looking for and coughed into her clenched fist.

"As far as we're aware casualties are lower than previously estimate, we're looking at around 980 registered ninja and 26 civilian." There was a murmur; it was a high amount of casualties for less than 24 hours of fighting but there had been suspicions that the figures would soar into the thousands, it seemed a good sign that the numbers were bobbing just below the thousand mark.

"Our injuries are unconfirmed, although the last time we checked, approximately four hours ago, the figures were just short of 2900."

That left them with roughly 45% of their military force alive and uninjured, it was quite unnerving to believe that they were so suddenly so vulnerable to attack. Sunagakure had been a military titan in its' golden days and it was no laughing joke even now. Coupled with Oto, of which Naruto was certain Orochimaru had his claws in, the attack had packed far more of a punch than had previously been expected. The blond found himself wondering, a little morbidly, if the amount of deaths and injuries would have been lower if the Sandaime had listened to him all those weeks before.

"-chiya, we'll assign some reserve medical core personnel to the western sector hospital and the field recovery team. We'll redirect…" A list of three or four names, none of which Naruto recognized, were read out "to help you to further organize the medical corps."

She nodded her head, hair dipping as her chin dropped to her chest. "Thank you." Then she sat, biting her lip as she shuffled through her paperwork once more.

Naruto rested his head against the grey concrete wall, feeling the grain rub against his scalp that was covered with a layer of cloying sweat that made his skin itch. How he longed for a relaxing bath and a soft, fluffy, warm, dark... His eyes snapped open and his head jolted upwards as he steadied his weight on his knee. He was obviously far more exhausted than he had first realized, it was rare that he found himself falling asleep in such an important situation. There was a moment when Naruto felt his eye sight begin to blur once more as his head lolled to the left, and then he sprung upright once more as a familiar presence stirred him into consciousness.

"Sleeping on the job Kitsune?"

Naruto cracked open a lazy eye, observing the grey haired Jounin with a faint grin as his brain registered that the council was talking about, damaged buildings and personal property, not something that he had much interest in. Kakashi settled down, wincing as he brushed bloody knuckles against the leather seat. The blond noticed the pained angle at which the elder man held his head, and how his good eye was half lidded in tension. No doubt the man had been constantly fighting since Naruto had last seen him at the Exam Stadium.

"I could almost say the same for you Senpai." The ex-Anbu chuckled softly as he allowed his eyes to drift shut once more, the lulling sounds of voices gradually growing softer as he felt himself relax.

"You'll still need to give your report Naruto, sleep needs to wait." He felt his hand nudged softly, before a familiar round pill filled his palm, it's cool, comforting wait brining back half forgotten memories of late night escapades and the thousand miles of sizzling sand as he perched atop of a rolling wagon with the smooth inside of the mask pressed against his face. A military rations pill. The inky dark surface was covered in dust, and part of the surface had been marred by a long graze where Kakashi had presumably come into contact with the floor.

"Appreciated."

He quickly popped the pill into his mouth, wincing as the multitude of flavorings: rice, seeds, fruit, assaulted his senses and blended into a bitter, stomach turning mulch as he swallowed it down his throat. The effect of the foul concoction wasn't immediately apparent, although the numb coldness in his fingers began to slowly recede and it didn't take all his will power to focus on keeping his eyes open. Unfortunately the slow trickle of feeling presented him with the shallow knife wound on his right shoulder and the burning itch on the left side of his face, a residue from the chakra burns of Kabuto's jutsu. He groaned.

"-The m-medical tents in the fourth south eastern area have been badly damaged by enemies." Michiya stuttered, tugging a strand of loose hair between her fingertips.

"We've gone over this before." Homura chided, although his words were kind, his eyes were weary and brimming with annoyance. Koharu hadn't taken such measures to make the girl comfortable and Naruto remembered the fright he'd felt when confronted with such an icy glare and disapproving frown. The girl nodded, her eyes dropping to the table as she muttered hasty apologies. Naruto wasn't sure how she had managed to get to such a position and still manage to be so nervous at a meeting like this. At least two hours down the line and the disorder the attack had created was slowly being regulated, search parties were sent out, hospital lines were reinforced and buildings were being rebuilt. Normalcy was returning.

Naruto rubbed his shoulder with a dirty palm.

"So, we're onto the last item on our agenda I believe." All eyes turned to him and Naruto sighed, raising himself to his feet with a non-to-gentle shove from the silver haired Jounin. "Uzumaki."

The dry, drawl tone that came from Koharu's mouth wasn't formed as a question, which left Naruto to face the cold, hard statement. He wasn't sure where this was actually going, all he wanted to know that the meeting he'd attempted to prepare had worked as planned. Naruto wasn't sure that this interrogation was going to be entirely pleasant.

"M'am."

Her lips pursed as dark beady eyes stared him down. The blue eyed boy remembered the time that a rogue-nin had managed to sneak into Konoha in an attempt to poison Danzou. _Unfortunately_ she'd failed and almost caused the two advisors to ingest the bark extract that would have led to a quick yet painful death. The kunoichi had then tried to silence them in an effort to protect herself. She failed.

"Are you aware that there's a death warrant with your name on it?"

Naruto hid his expression by quickly quipping. "Many countries have had death warrants for me over the years."

There was a moment of tension where two iron wills clashed and dark, sharp eyes met unblinking crystalline blue."This one was a conjoined effort between Suna and Konoha." Koharu told him, her tone almost smug as she delivered the information. Naruto had to bite his cheek as the council room burst into life, the hairs on the back of his neck rising as troubled eyes focused on him.

"I don't think the contract is valid bearing in mind the current situation we've found ourselves in M'am." From his current location Naruto couldn't quite see if the Hokage had signed the paper, so he was going to have to bluff it until Koharu decided she'd tell him what all the smirking was about.

"Unfortunately Uzumaki… we have ourselves a problem."

Was it him or had the temperature dropped by several thousand degrees? The way that both Koharu and Homura were eying him made him think of to cats that were about to murder the mouse. Naruto being the metaphorical mouse about to be murdered. The tinge of fear made his stomach turn. His last words to the Hokage had left them parting on bad terms, allowing his mouth to run off with him and insult everything the Hokage stood for. Surely the Hokage wouldn't-

"Sandaime-sama signed this document, therefore making it valid."

Oh.

_Shit._

The boy allowed his chakra, which had been previously been sluggish and hidden, to whirr back into action as he eyed them both warily, fingers rippling in a limbering motion as he prepared himself for any impending attacks. Kakashi stood to his feet, the limp sounding painfully obvious as he shielded his student from the two advisors.

"You've no right to do this, it was all a set up from that trai-!" Kakashi was interrupted by a stern look from the two advisors who quickly silenced him.

"As far as I'm aware Hatake Kakashi, nobody asked for your interjection."

As the silver haired Jounin went to protest once more, it was Naruto that forced him out of the way with a gentle shove. The blond didn't speak but his eyes communicated far more than any brief few words could ever manage, and Kakashi found himself frowning as he sat back down, although he was ready to leap to his previous student's aid if this confrontation became physical.

"However as we are currently acting in the Hokage's place we have the ability to revoke official documents until the Sandaime is well enough to return to office."

So where was this all going?

"We want to discuss… a contract of sorts Uzumaki."

Oh…This was going to get nasty.

"Carry on." He ground out between clenched teeth, Naruto was almost certain that this was going to go exactly how was expecting it to go. "I can't _wait_ to hear you out."

Koharu almost cracked a smile. "Let it be known that if you refuse this offer, the warrant will be in full effect and if you escape your imprisonment once more then your information will be put in the Bingo Book and we won't ask for you to be returned alive." Naruto growled softly at the not so veiled threats.

"And the offer M'am?" He clenched a fist and watched in satisfaction as the old woman watched his movements with wary eyes.

"You're to rejoin Konoha's military forces." It had been said. The moment Naruto had been waiting for. He grinned, silent for just a moment as he felt that one grey eye bore into his back with frightening intensity. They weren't sure what they should expect, it was relatively well known that Naruto had little love for the military after his resignation, but they also knew that it was unlikely that he'd resort to the life of a missing-nin. The silence was so palpable that the slight scrape of a shoes' sole against the concrete floor was the loudest sound in the room. Homura looked like he was preparing a sealing jutsu, having figured that Naruto planned to escape although he'd yet to move from the spot he'd been standing on for the past twenty minutes or so. Koharu's icy demeanor was melting into red fury and it would be mere seconds before she blew.

The room was tipped into turmoil as Naruto shifted his weight into a casual stance with an air of dismissal, although there was a faint smirk on his pale lips. "Consider it a deal… M'am."

Extra long chapter in apology...did you enjoy? I'm sorry for 'driving you insane' by not updating, I have thought of this story almost everyday since the last update,) so you've not been completely abandoned, just temporarily whilst i tried to find my footing!

Chapter updates will never be that long again, won't promise in case I get run over by a car or something (me and Laz have _the_ worst luck of _all time_ at the minute D: ) but I shall do my best :D

Thank you...and _you_..._and_ you.._and you...you..._


	23. Sigh no More

Holy Moly! I do believe I'm alive!

Quick summary

_Naruto is an ex-Anbu, who after meeting Team 7 , suffering the death of a close Anbu friend Tora__ and the Oto-Suna attack__, has returned to active duty within the Konoha forces. __Kisame and Itachi have returned to Konoha, secretly working for the Hokage, but all three are recuperating in hospital after facing off against Orochimaru and the revived Uchiha family, all of whom died. The Oto-Suna attack is now over and Konoha is just struggling back to its feet._

* * *

"Not-a-_word_!" Naruto hissed vehemently between clenched teeth, blond hair plastered to his head as the mist-like rain continued to fall from the drab, grey sky above. His words were punctuated by a lazy rumble of thunder. Kakashi couldn't help but compare the boy to a disgruntled cat that had been dunked in a bath tub. At that time the two shinobi were stood by the entrance of Konoha's main hospital building, surrounded by a crowd of busy workers that were attempting to restore what remained of the charred east wing. Naruto was _bristling_ in annoyance and Kakashi was thoroughly amused that he was being forced to play messenger boy.

Naruto believed that it was a cruel punishment for his actions during the invasion. Kakashi had to agree.

"I almost feel like the Bingo Book entry would be less effort..." Naruto grumbled, running a hand through his hair and grimacing as it connected with his forehead protector, grazing his knuckle on a sharp edge "Damn, stupid..." Naruto began to curse. Kakashi could still the faint silver scars of the jutsu Naruto had used to fend of Kabuto, the swirled markings dissapearing beneath the cover of his clothing - A Chunin flak jacket and regulation blue trousers, tied at the knees to minimise air resistance. Kakashi had tried to talk to Naruto about the effects of the jutsu, but the boy avoided the conversation stubbornly, so Kakashi let him be.

"You don't really think that." Kakashi chided him in a matter-of-fact tone that subdued Naruto's grumblings into blissful momentary silence. He knew the boy would have taken off already if he'd planned to go rogue.

"I don't feel that it would take any less effort? Or that I won't leave?" Naruto suddenly chuckled with good-natured ease that let Kakashi breathe a sigh of relief. There was only so much pessimism a man could take and he was nearing his limits. He wished that Naruto would stop pretending to be so sullen.

"Neither...either...both." Kakashi pointed out, waving a free hand in the air with a hidden smile "Take your pick."

The blond boy chuckled again, shifting his weight restlessly as the first rays of sunshine began to peak through the clouds in a valiant attempt to dispel the foul weather. Kakashi was sure that the boy was conscious of every second that he was _supposed_ to be working and was instead wasting out here on the damp flagstones, it showed in his inability to _stand still_. His arm were currently stretched above his head with his fingers interlinked, the muscles across his shoulders pulled taut under flesh.

"I need to be off." Naruto countered with a mock serious look, dropping his hands to adjust the leather satchel strapped to his shoulder "Pass on my regards to your team..." He stopped, brows drawing together in an unreadable expression before he started again "In fact just update me on how they're doing... they don't need to hear from me. Not just yet"

Naruto turned to leave, but the sound of a man clearing his throat stopped him. There was little doubt that it was the Jounin.

"You _could_ always come see them you know." The older man trailed off, hands coming up to cross against his chest "See how they're doing for yourself...?"

"I'd love to... I really would." Naruto quickly turned away from Kakashi "but I've got things to do right now. I'll come see them when everything's sorted out."

"Is that a promise?"

"Ha! Promises..." Naruto shot back with a grin, but when he saw the Jounin's frown he sighed, the smile slipping a little at the edges. For a long, tense moment it was silent. Kakashi was the one to shatter it. "I will."

"Remember tonight."

The Jounin wished he could let the boy forget as he watched Naruto almost physically flinch at the mention of tonight's _festivities_. What a poor word for them. Tonight was the night where Hikuro Neruki was to be commemorated by her friends and family in order for her soul to finally attain peace.

"I-I will." He nodded, shoulders drawn upwards as he dropped eye contact, repeating the words to himself quietly, more assuredly "I will."

Kakashi hesitantly reached out a hand in comfort, but in a blink of an eye, the boy was gone, leaving nothing but a wispy trace of chakra in his wake. The older man paused with a frown, waving a hand towards the strange source of chakra as it began to disintegrate, watching how it twisted itself into a manner of convoluted, unnaturally sharp angled shapes before disappearing completely. Almost eating itself up.

He'd never seen anything like _that_ before...

* * *

That evening it rained again.

The mood was already sombre, but the constant drizzle and the nip of the night time breeze made them all shiver. The crowd wasn't huge, Neruki had spent much of her life in Anbu and time for true social relationships was limited, but there were faces he recognised. Naruto had seen Kensuki hunched forward with such an air of loss in his eyes that he'd had to look away, but then he'd caught sight of Tora's brother, clutching onto his wife with all his strength, but he wouldn't sit, no matter how much his wife begged. It brought a smile to his lips, but he hid it under the hood of his damp charcoal coat.

The pain in his chest was suffocating him. It hadn't eased up at all. It was starting to worry him. There was something wrong, but he couldn't rest yet, there were too many loose end to rest. He kept telling himself that the itching beneath his skin would clear if he waited it out, there was no need to get help. In reality he knew that it was urgent. He chose to ignore it.

A quick glance around (_to distract_ _himself)_ told him that over the years, Neruki had met a lot of people. The old Hyuuga in the wheelchair, _Yanagi_, who had never told him quite how he'd known Neruki, was present, although he was not with the other Hyuuga's and Naruto found himself wondering what the story was. The other Hyuugas, all lower branch members except for the youngest, who held his chin high with pride and at such an angle where the rain could no longer be differentiated from tears, were silent and unmoving. They seemed to stay so unnaturally still. The red haired Inuzuka girl was crying, she was trying hard not to cry too loudly but even the comforting arms of another she could not quite contain her sobs, her head bowed as tensed shoulders shuddered in time with her breaths. Surprisingly he found most of the major clans were represented.

'_Every person casts a shadow...'_ He was _sure_ that was a beginning to a poem; the one line reminding him of the small inn they'd stopped at one pastel afternoon in spring. It was quaint, the tea tasting heavenly after the dry dust of the road and their conversation mingled pleasantly with the gentle rush of air through the green fields of harlequin stalks. She'd been talking, he couldn't remember what she'd been saying, but he could guess that it was about the mission, or about her poorly disguised hatred towards Yama, but her eyes were bright and the masks were down. They were allowed to cast a shadow.

He sighed and let his eyes fall shut. He might have been able to convince himself that it was the prick of tiny rain drops as they were driven into his eyes, but he didn't have the energy. The chakra in his system was grating thin against his insides and he had to restrain the urge to breath out too quickly, just in case Kakashi noticed that something was wrong and ratted him out. He knew he couldn't keep avoiding Kakashi's touch for much longer if he wanted to avoid suspicion. He just needed to last a bit longer.

A lone voice spoke out over the gathered crowd.

To Naruto it was neither masculine nor feminine, but it held an authority he could admire. It told of Neruki's brave escapades of the days of the war, her Jounin career, her family... ANBU wasn't mentioned once, but he knew there would be members present here who would go back to the others with a blank face and heavy eyes, to celebrate her existence in the best way people who weren't allowed to exist were able.

They told of how she'd stood out against Orochimaru as he'd attempted to kill defenceless Genin... _"I better get famous for this!"_ How she'd given her life in order to protect the things she loved most... _"Tell them..." she whispered softly, the poison in her veins causing her sallow face to contort in agony "Tell them...that I loved them."_ The happiness she had brought them all, the memories they would cherish of her.. _"You know...that you're going to have to re-enter that madness again...right? Would you do that...for the sake of...one silly promise?"_ Her unwavering loyalty... _"Then let's hope... That it will be a long time before we meet again...Hokage-sama."_

He buried his face in his hands with a deep breath, chest clenching along with his hands as they scraped mercilessly against his cold, weather-beaten skin. He couldn't even bear to look at her family, he couldn't find the courage to look up at their pleading faces that were asking the silent sort of questions few people liked to answer. In a way it was his fault. He hadn't got there quick enough. He was late. He couldn't bear it.

The leaves had turned shades of amber and gold, reddening at the edges as they reached the end of their short lives, doomed to leave the trees barren and cold before the snow fell. One last moment of blazing glory before rotting into the earth. The rain was heavier now, but Naruto didn't twitch his coat to cover the sodden skin, nor did he use any jutsus to repel the onslaught. He occupied himself by watching the standard issue coffin become consumed by the curl and lick of the unnaturally vibrant red flame. To some it might seem strange to enforce such a burial in a downpour, but the others knew there should be no trace of the physical body allowed to remain. The flames grew higher still, but despite the sting of his dry eyes, he refused to move. Kakashi had his head bowed, chin resting against his chest as silver hair dripped down his cheeks. He might have been crying. He could have offered the man a reassuring touch, but right now he had no desire to reveal the extent of the injuries he'd sustained during the invasion of Konoha. Kakashi could cope. He'd coped before.

The pain. He wished he could just sleep. Could he still feel his finger tips? He didn't know. He could no longer feel his legs, he'd wait until they had left. He'd manage. He had to. He wasn't sure how long they stood there, under the insistent drizzle of an apathetic sky that held back the sun, but slowly people frittered away until there remained but a handful. He drew back away from the main group, standing by a dull headstone of a name he didn't recognise, watching.

Kakashi was offering a few words of comfort, lacking the courage to reach out those final few centimetres but the Hikuro family (_what remained of it_) obviously cherished his presence, evident when Izumi stood on tip toe to press a grateful kiss to his cheek. She smiled in a pained way, before her eyes went back to Kensuki.

He'd have to talk to them eventually. Taihei had noticed him earlier, there would be no escaping now. So he stepped forwards. Teetering unsteadily on leaden legs.

"I'm sorry for your loss." He murmured softly as he approached them, clasping the eldest (_surviving) _Hikuro sibling firmly by the hand when it was proffered, cringing at the bolt of pain that ricocheted down from his fingertips to his elbow as his pathways protested from the slight movement. "She will be missed."

"Na-." Kensuki began, confusion screwing his face into puzzled expression, before his mother shushed him, with an expression that told him to wait for a few moments. His eyebrows were furrowed. It was natural that Kensuki was curious, he had yet to ask Naruto about what had truly happened the day of the Chunin exams, when he'd stepped in front of a raging _monster_ with nothing but a snide remark and the clothes he was wearing on his back.

"I-It took me a while to place your face sir." Taihei began slowly, with great deliberation over his wording "At first I thought I was just plain crazy, getting old, but then I see you _here_... I'd have liked to believe it's a simple coincidence... but I remember you now."

"I've been away for a while." Naruto found himself saying, it was half a truth, but was better than no truth at all. He couldn't lie, not now and never again. Now was the time to put things right after all. Pain flared and he clutched at his forearms to keep them from shaking. Kakashi was looking at him strangely, but he only had to pretend for a little longer now.

"I'm glad you were here... So very glad... When did you know?"

"_that she was dead?_"

but the last few words of the question were left unspoken. Naruto looked up, teeth gritted as he all but whispered. "I was there."

If he expected a fresh wave of tears, then they disappointed him. Kensuki seemed to want to say something, his mouth part-ways to opening before a stern look from his mother reprimanded him. The boy looked worse than Naruto had expected, his eyes were blotched with spots and streaks of tears and he could see the lingering signs of both physical and chakra exhaustion that still remained present on his body. Naruto felt he could sympathise, the grating in his pathways was almost overbearing. He blinked hard.

"She told me to tell you some things... she told me that you can't keep it a secret for much longer." He hoped that made more sense to _them_ than it did to himself and there was a moment in which he panicked that it was nothing but nonsense, but by the glance they shared there was _something_ they hadn't shared. "She told me-

_"If Kensuki-kun... passes the Chunin exams...tell him I always knew he would and... if he doesn't, then tell... him that there's always a next time so... good luck Kiddo"_ At this, Kensuki broke down into sobs and nobody could bring themselves to do anything but pity him. Sometimes too much sentimentality was frowned upon in their career, but today was an exception. This small amount of grief was being repeated throughout Konoha as many other funeral pyres flickered into ash, it was a day to mourn and a day to be human.

"T-thank you sir." Izumi spoke, when her husband moved to open his mouth but nothing but a pained choke emerged. Her words were traitorously thick with emotion "Th-th-thank you."

"I'm no sir." He smiled, reached forwards, held her hand gently as he bowed his head in respect despite the pangs that now coursed viciously throughout his system "I should be thanking you."

Naruto felt himself waiver, knees suddenly betraying him as he narrowly dodging Kakashi's assertive hand as it moved to steady him, an action that made the others frown and made him feel faint.

"Is everything okay Naruto?" Kensuki spoke suddenly, reaching forwards to steady the person he thought he'd known "You don't look too good."

The trembling boy snatched his hand away suddenly. The Genin surely wouldn't be able to diagnose his problem, but he would definitely be able to tell that something was wrong..

"Fine... just a hard day." He tried weakly as he inspected the palm of his hand with apparent and sudden interest, noticing the trembling of the faint grey lines as the chakra struggled to flow in its usual course. Medical jutsus had never been his forte... he was at a bit of a dilemma... The sky rumbled and they all jumped. The clocks seemed to start ticking again and they conveniently remembered the time.

"We must have you over sometime." Izumi smiled, a wan smile but it was as genuine display of happiness as she could manage given the situation. "It would be just lovely to see you." Taihei simply nodded in agreement, his words failing him still.

Kakashi looked preoccupied and it took Izumi another offer of food to get him to pay attention. They both shared a long, knowing look before shifting their attention back to the newly appointed blond shinobi, whose violent shuddering caused him to sway on the spot.

"Naruto...?" Kakashi asked softly, the wariness in his tone apparent as Naruto stumbled forwards half a step before righting himself, a hand subconsciously raised to his forehead with a quiet groan. "What's wrong?"

"Long day." He muttered again with a hint of stubborn annoyance. "Not much sleep."

"There's something wrong, you need to tell me what it is so I can help." Kakashi tried again, watching Naruto flinch away from any hands that reach out to help with an anxious expression. "Please." He begged.

Naruto looked up sharply, the two hazy eyes connecting with fretful grey before he mumbled.

"_Please_ don't be angry."

Taihei's wife had leapt forward just in time to catch the boy just before he hit the floor, their shouts of surprise making his head ring with noise as he curled in on himself slowly... He'd never felt this bad... make it go away, make it stop! They died away in the harsh whisper of a shunshin followed by the sudden clamour of so many voices that tumbled over one another... then merciful silence.

He slept.

* * *

Sounds arose from the sluggish depths.

"_-but what's wrong with him doctor?"_

"_We've never seen anything quite like it before..." The doctor said, more than a hint of worry evident in her voice "His whole chakra pathway system... it's out of place."_

"_Out of place?"_

Naruto stared up at the ceiling, rhythmic beeping by his side an indication that something was serious enough for him to end up in the Intensive Care Ward. Outside he could hear his doctor, a female voice that was both weary and frustrated trying to explain exactly how he'd managed to displace his entire chakra circulatory system.

Amusing.

Of course he could _tell them_, but that would interrupt his long needed rest.

When Kakashi stepped back into the hospital room, Naruto was peacefully asleep.

* * *

The Sandaime closed his eyes. He'd been advised to stay in bed a while longer, they told him that he should take it easy... but there wasn't enough time left for that.

"And they say there's nothing we can do for him?" He asked quietly; a sign of momentary weakness that only Kakashi was privy too. "Nothing at all?"

The Hokage heard the younger man sigh, a pang constricting his chest as he thought for the millionth time _'I'm too old for this job, we need fresh blood in here...' _The remaining member of the Hatake clan seemed to be giving him the silent treatment for the moment, but the Hokage didn't push. Kakashi would speak when he was able. The sun was just beginning to peek over the treetops as sky turned to hues of peach and lavender when Kakashi found his voice.

"I just don't-" A hiss of breath "They say that even _they_ don't fully understand the extent of his injuries. Even Gai doesn't know."

On Sarutobi's table, a stack of photographs laid in stark contrast to the pale pastel hues of his paperwork. On each of the images, silvery spirals trailed across flesh, intricate scars that indicated that somewhere something was damaged. They hadn't thought much of it at the time, sealing jutsu often left marks when they were drawn on skin, but this time it was no seal that had caused these marks.

Kakashi had first flung Naruto at the doctors and they'd assumed he was suffering from chakra exhaustion, that he was a Genin who'd been studying his jutsu beyond the means of his body. When Kakashi had told them this was impossible, they delved a little deeper. The intricate lines, like the tribal war paint shinobi had worn before the times of the hidden villages, were the lines of new chakra pathways that Naruto had managed to completely remodel. Somehow he'd managed to divert internal pathways in order to feed his more important reserves, it would have made him faster, stronger, more immune to pain, but it had been left for so long that important pathways were beginning to shut down and die when no new chakra was able to enter his system - His body had continued to use up what was left after the invasion and it was slowly killing him.

The thought made Kakashi feel sick.

"They say that any operation to revert the pathways would either kill _him_ or kill _them._ There's been no recorded case of this happening before so they've got nothing to work with, they say he might never recover." The silver haired Jounin held strong, he wouldn't allow any signs of the panic he was feeling to show "They say it might be easier just to let him go."

"And has he been awake? Has he said anything?"

"He's been awake a few times so far, but only lucid enough to outline the jutsus he used, most of the time he isn't focused enough to hold a conversation... but-" Kakashi took a deep breath "They say that when he usually wakes up, he-he doesn't really say much, they're not sure if he's all still _there_."

They both remained silent.

"I have an idea." The Sandaime said suddenly, turning back to Kakashi with a ghost of a smile "Jiraiya has sent a message, he'll be passing through here any day now-"

"With all due respect Hokage-sama I don't even think that Jiraiya will be able to he-"

"Listen Hatake!" Kakashi dutifully shut his mouth, although his one grey eye expressed his doubts about the frog Sannin. "He's looking for inspiration for one of those novels... but he's heard rumours that Tsunade is in the country."

Then suddenly it all began to make sense.

"But will she come back?"

"Highly unlikely." Hiruzen grumbled before handing over a leaf of yellowing paper to the silent Jounin, watching as the stone grey eye scanned across words and illustrations with an unrivalled intensity. The eye raised to lock with watery blue.

"I'm assuming that this report on pathways has been brought to the attention of the medical core?" Kakashi asked, his voice a little harsher than intended although the Hokage countered it with a patient smile and a nod.

"They were the ones who passed it on to me."

"Then I fail to see-" Hiruzen raised a single finger and the younger man quieted.

"For a man who always respects the rule of 'looking underneath the underneath', are you not being a little slow-witted today? Look a little closer."

Kakashi furrowed his brow, scanning the report once more, flipping the sheet over in his hands as he searched for whatever the Hokage was goading him to find. Realisation dawned only a moment later. "Shizune wrote this?"

"Indeed. It was sent to us a fair few years back, it seems that Shizune is making a name for herself in the field."

"You think she would leave Tsunade to come help us? I don't see that happening!" There was a tone of hurt in his voice, perhaps believing that the avenue of hope he had just been offered was all in vain.

"She came back for her Jounin exams didn't she?" The older man pointed out "and besides she's already on her way here, Jiraiya contacted her on his way here and she's more than happy to come and take a look. We just need to hope."

"Hope." Kakashi let his shoulders sag. Today, or yesterday rather, had been a stressful day. Sasuke had only just been released from the hospital and he'd been found passed out in the training grounds that evening, suffering from a relapse of exhaustion. Itachi had chuckled a little at this, although he himself too was still cooped up in a ward somewhere, far away from anyone that might recognise him. Kakashi didn't know how his future would pan out... would Sasuke be happy to see his brother once he knew the truth?

"Right now, hope is as much as we can do."

* * *

"There's a pig – in my hospital." The young doctor was torn between frustration and wonderment "It's... It's wearing pearls."

A passing nurse stopped, his mouth curled into an amused grin "Ah Miss Nemoto, this is Ton-Ton. Ton-Ton this is Miss Nemoto, be nice to her please."

The small pink pig gave a soft oink that sounded a little reluctant. The pearls clacked against one another as those small beady eyes returned to its owner, an owner who was clearly lost.

"I'm sorry, can I help you at all? Are you visiting a patient?"

The woman turned, short dark hair swaying about her face as she tucked an aggravating strand behind her ear. She smiled. "Ah, I'm supposed to be meeting Hatake-san in room..." She paused, dark eyes flitting down to a small trace of paper before a flicker of annoyance crossed her face "Sometime I wish people would just take the time to write neatly. I'm sorry, the writing is terrible, it might be 310 or it might be 510..."

Together they concluded that it must be room 310.

"I'm sorry, you are aware it's an intensive care unit?" Nemoto questioned, racking her memory for which case had been assigned room 310, although it was far from her ward and area of specialty.

"Perfectly, I've been asked by the Hokage himself."

"I have to apologise, can we run your name through the system? I'm sure you can understand many people have tried that excuse before and-" The dark haired woman interrupted her with a knowing smile.

"Kato Shizune."

* * *

Naruto was increasingly aware of how few his lucid moments were becoming.

It was something he'd only touched upon briefly in his studies, chakra-pathway manipulation that is. The basics were: chakra supplied power to wherever it was directed by a pathway, the more training you had – the larger volume of chakra your pathways could handle, chakra pathways were set at birth and there was nothing that could change those facts. So of course he'd gotten interested, dabbled with some medical diagrams and old textbooks, learned the underlying theory of the Eight Gates technique until he'd become to develop his own theory – could you not reroute the pathways in order to provide a faster flow to the areas that needed it the most? He thought it'd be foolproof, that he was untouchable and the jutsu would render him undefeatable. How he'd been so mistaken, what had gone wrong? He'd never had this result before...! Now there were areas of his body, areas that performed processes that were vital to his survival, which had been starved of their life-energy, that were wilting away beneath the strain of his continued existence.

He was frightened.

Beneath the layer of dull, droning noise he heard someone scream for the doctor, drilling behind his eyeballs. It was far too warm... He wanted...!

Cool.

His lethargic conscience slept.

* * *

Shizune had spent all day with the boy, the sun had long since disappeared from the sky. The Hokage and Hatake had been to visit and once assured the boy was no longer in a critical condition had also left. Now it was just the young medical ninja and her pig.

"_..-e're staying?'_

'_We don't and he won't survive another week... How the hell did such a young brat get himself into such trouble?'_

'_Hatake seems convinced of foul-play.'_

'_I think the stupid kid just went out of his depth, we all have limitations – or we end up dead.'_ The voice was... Naruto struggled to think of a word, his mind wasn't even blank, it just didn't respond.

'_That's unfair!'_

'_Sh, he's waking up!'_

Naruto cracked open a leathery eyelid with cat-like precaution, glancing only the faint online of one silhouette in the room before dropping back into relief-filled sleep, his mind not even questioning the presence of two voices for just one body.

Once Shizune was entirely sure the boy was deep asleep, she frowned in the direction of the apparently empty visitor's chair.

"For the record I still think you're being unfair."

A scowling face appeared from the worn fabric, airy brows haughtily unapologetic.

"He was out of his depth."

"If you'd just come look-"

"Not interested."

"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune barked, causing the older woman to stop her facade of disinterest with a sigh.

"I willingly put up with your behaviour, but now, this is serious. Somehow this boy has managed to replace and create pathways, damaging pretty much everything in there... Everything's scarmbled and I'm not sure how to deal with it. Please-" Her face was flushed and irate, finally fed up of her master's behaviour "I would appreciate your assistance.

Tsunade was taken aback. It was often that Shizune raised her voice, and it wasn't often that she outwardly asked for her help. Hesitantly the Sannin rose from her place in the chair and walked over to the occupied bed. The boy looked horribly like Minato when he was laid like this, blond hair fanned against the pillow, but his pale features were marred by the silvery trails that were branded in his skin. She wanted to know how Minato and Kushina's son had managed to find himself in such a state - He had a Chunin vest on, but the technique was far above Chunin level. Shizune was still waiting for his medical history file to be sent down, but Tsunade was already intrigued.

Cautiously, she pressed her glowing hands against his chest, waiting as the chakra seeped into his body before tentatively searching for the cause of his affliction. Barely centimetres in she found the problem - many of the main chakra lines had been preserved, but many were slowly disintegrating, or had been torn up by excessive use, torn up beyond recognition and barely functioning. She stood back with a grimace, suddenly losing connection with the boy.

"It's not good, to say the least." Tsunade began, rubbing her forehead out of habit "It was almost a suicidal jutsu, rerouting the pathways to feed other areas - He's lucky he has such an impressive amount of residual chakra. I have no doubt this would have killed anybody else his age, or at least ten years his senior. Yet, this means we have to move quickly." She returned to her chair with a groan "It means _you_ have to move quickly."

"You're not going to help?" Shizune asked, lips tightly knit as returned to the charts at the foot of the boy's bed.

"I said I didn't want to get involved, I said I'd come along only if you got stuck. That was what I said."

"With all due respect Tsunade-sama, my medical knowledge might be able to prolong his life but I can't save him. It was worse than I first thought."

Tsunade looked to the floor, her blonde hair falling loose from its ties and gathering around her face. She felt old, and she felt tired. This place reminded her far too much of Dan and Nawaki and she had no desire to stay here any longer than necessary - If her help was needed to restore the boy to health, then she would, as long as it meant that they could leave quickly once they had done.

"If we're going to save him, we're going to need a Fuinjutsu user and a Gates user we can trust. Can you do that for me?" Tsunade asked, resigning herself to her fate momentarily in the thought that she could celebrate with sake as soon as the ordeal was over. "We need them here as soon as possible. Ask the Sandaime if he can recommend anyone, preferably A-ranked or over, we need people who can deal with this. Not someone who just _thinks_ they're a hotshot."

Shizune smiled, nodded once and left, trusting Naruto in the care of Tsunade. The older woman sunk back in her chair, wondering just what she had let herself in for and why she had decided to accompany Shizune back to this hell hole. Her mouth watered as she thought of the sake that was to come, remembering the taste of the sake in the bar down by the river all those years ago, wondering if the place still traded. She listened to the soft breathing of her patient, frowning when she heard it momentarily speed up - uncommon for someone in such a deep sleep.

"So... who are you?"

Tsunade looked down at the blond haired, blue eyes patient with an irritated sense of annoyance. "How long have _you_ been awake?"

* * *

Thank you everyone for your lovely reviews! I know it's been forever, but I still kept checking back and when everyone was leaving such awesome reviews I felt like I just had to come back and post another chapter. So I've re-edited lots of chapters, however there's no real need to go back and reread since I was just tightening up some poor choices to make it easier for new readers :D

Again, another big thank you to everyone that reviewed, you played a big part in making this chapter happen! See you all next chapter!


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